The Little Things In Life
by HPtwilightfanatic
Summary: No one ever stops to enjoy the little things in life. Most people just take them for granted. But those little things seem to come upon James and Lily everywhere. And they seem to be bringing them together in the oddest of ways. Lily/James. Very fluffy!
1. Clouds

I lie in the open grass on the Hogwarts grounds. It was finally close to summer, and I couldn't be more content. As much as I loved school, I felt relieved to have my O.W.L.S finally over and done with.

I let a sigh escape, and my eyes drifted back up towards the sky. "What's the oh-so-dramatic-sigh for, huh Evansy Love?"

_There goes my peaceful afternoon._

I groaned internally, wishing that I could wish away that egotistical, arrogant voice. Don't tell me that I can't tell all of that from one sentence from him, because I can.

"What is it Potter?" I sighed again, too lazy to be angry at the moment.

"Oh nothing. I just saw you out here."

I felt him plop down next to me. I squinted one eye at him. His usual messy black hair, actually fell back from his face for once, as he tilted his face up to the sky, his eyes closed, and his arms propped him up. I rolled my one open eye, and let it shut again.

For once in his life, Potter was silent. I didn't interrupt that blessed silence that never happened when _any_ of the Marauders were around. I just opened my eyes, and let them gaze up at the blue sky, patched with pure white clouds.

"I see a ship."

James looked down at me with a puzzled look. I returned his look and lifted my arm to point upwards. James followed my pointed finger up at the clouds.

"I don't see anything." His tone pulled my heart strings. He sounded so upset. Like a little kid who had lost the grip on their balloon and was now watching it as it floated up into the heavens.

So I sidled up next to him, hesitantly putting my arm around his shoulders, and pulling him closer to me, so he could see exactly where I was pointing.

"It's right there, kind of in the empty space. All of the other clouds are surrounding it. See?" Turning my face towards his was a bad idea. Seeing how close our faces were was making this position about a trillion times more awkward.

But then those chocolate eyes of his lit up, sparks flying around like snitches in the dark depths, and that devil loose grin made a show on his lips.

"I see it!" He yet again reminded me of a child, but one that had just gotten a second balloon.

I couldn't help but smile with him.

"Do you do this often?" He turned to face me, one of his eyebrows curving up.

"Only when I'm bored…and…usually when I'm alone."

"Oh. I didn't mean to intrude, I just-"

"No! No, you're fine!" The funny thing was, I was fine with it. I know it sounds impossible, that one minute, I can be so miffed that he decided to come find me, and be the chip on my shoulder, and then be completely content with his company.

James looked back up at the deep blue sky, which now had some pink frills around the edges from the setting sun.

"I still can't picture things very well though."

"Well someone doesn't have a very good imagination, do they?"

James rolled his eyes, a reply that usually came from me.

I turned my attention back to the great sky, and focused on the clouds again. Very quickly, shapes began to form out of the clouds right before my very eyes.

"I see a hot air balloon."

"A what?"

"Oh. It's a muggle contraption. A big basket on the bottom, and huge balloon getting filled with hot air. People can take rides in them."

"Sound an awful lot like Sirius." James said, sounding earnest.

I started at that, tearing my eyes from the sky, and staring at the boy next to me.

James turned his head as well. He gave me a questioning look.

I burst out laughing. I could barely contain it, it just kept coming! And embarrassingly, I was snorting. I could just imagine my mother, berating me at this very moment. _"That's very unladylike Lily Evans! When you must laugh, you laugh quietly and politely! Not sounding like a rude, messy pig!"_

Hearing my mother's voice in my head just made me start laughing even harder.

"Evans. Evans! Don't die on me Evans!" James started slapping my back, hard, but not painfully, while he started erupting in laughter as well.

I leaned my head on Potter's shoulder, not able to control movement from my laughing.

After what seemed like forever, our laughter died down, an occasional snort from either of us would come out, and we'd giggle for awhile.

"You know, I'm surprised you've never done this." I whispered.

"Done what Emeralds?"

I shoved him, but kept my head on his shoulder. "Quit it with the nicknames! And you know what I mean!"

"Oh! You mean the clouds! I see…well…I don't really know. It's never really crossed my mind to look up at the clouds and look for shapes, I guess." I nodded, moving my gaze back up to the sky. It looked purplish now, kind of like the bruise I'd given Snape's nose.

"There's a phoenix." James pointed over the lake, right over the sun.

"That's not a phoenix! That's a boot!"

"You have a weird imagination Evans."

"Thanks Potter. Love you too."

"Really!"

"No."

I shook from the silent laughter that coursed through James after my last comment.

_Wait, why would he laugh about that?_ I frowned at that thought. The word had just sort of popped out of my mouth, I hadn't really meant it…but I did, right? I didn't love Potter. I knew that I didn't. I mean, sure, there were some moments, like this one for example, but then the next day, he'd go and do something toeragish and stupid, and it would be back to normal. Me hating him, and him pining after me.

"Now that one really is a fat guy riding a motorcycle."

I paused at that. "Where did that come from?"

"The cloud! Blame the cloud! I'm not being judgmental! Well…maybe. It kind of looks like Peter."

I snorted again at that one. "Riding Sirius' motorcycle?"

"Sure. It could be that too." He smiled down at me.

He did really have a nice smile…girls in my dormitory didn't lie about that…

"Hoi! You two! What are you doing down there? It's almost curfew! Get up here!" Filch's voice rang out over the grounds.

James and I jolted apart and stared up at the doors, at Filch's outline.

"Sirius is right." James said as we headed up towards Filch, taking huge steps just to get up the hill.

"About what?"

"Filch really does ruin the best moments." He nudged me with his shoulder, that grin back on his face.

"You know Potter, I'm pretty sure Sirius means it for something else."

James winked at me, his grin getting impossibly big, making him look more like the arrogant bastard he was.

That's another thing the girls in my dorm were right about. A wink from James Potter does really make you blush.

A/N: AND I'M BAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAACK! Hellooooooo everybody! Finally, some more Lily/James goodness! I haven't written them for a long time!

And sorry I didn't post this right away, I had to do some revising…you know how frustrating that is…*sigh*

So here it is! (And I promise I'll update this one more often!) Cause I'm actually really excited for this one!

Please Read& Review! Love you all!

HPtwilightfanatic


	2. Chocolate

I hadn't been able to get to sleep that night. Every time I would squeeze my eyes shut, I'd see different shapes that looked suspiciously like clouds.

And most of those cloud shapes had glasses, crazy disheveled hair, and a dazzling grin.

…Whoa, backtrack there Lily.

When did James Potter's smile become dazzling? When did it stop being the irritating arrogant toeragish smile that made me want to slap his face off?

Well anyway, I hadn't been able to fall asleep forever. Especially when pictures of hot air balloons shaped like Sirius' head started weaving their way through the Potter clouds. And that was just creepy.

So you can imagine, that me not being able to get to sleep until the wee hours of the morning, plus getting shaken awake and shouted at in my ear by Alice the next morning, (or rather…when the sun had come up…) didn't equal the best, peppy, happy Lily.

Not that I was ever _that _peppy and happy. That was Alice's job.

"Come on Lily, eat your eggs. I can hear the mold growing on them!" Speaking of Alice.

"You can't hear mold Alice." I told her, my voice still slightly groggy, and picked up my fork.

"Whatever. Get your excited face on! We're going to Hogsmeade!"

"I am excited about Hogsmeade. Just not too thrilled that you _woke me up_ at 5 o'clock."

"It's not that bad. Just get to sleep earlier!"

"Believe me, I tried." I glared at her. She moved away a bit, then shrugged.

I winced after I scooped some eggs in my mouth. They were already cold.

_Again…should've listened to Alice._

Here I was, the one with the good grades, and didn't have any common sense.

"Hurry up!" Alice jumped up and down in her seat, her plate empty.

I ditched my breakfast, trying to ignore my mother's berating voice pulsing through my head, as I walked away, arm in arm with Alice, leaving my full plate behind.

Alice dragged me all the way into the little town. This little town was probably one of my favorite places in the world, the other being Hogwarts. It was just so cute! Exactly how you imagine the little villages in story books. The decorated, crowded shops, where the owners and people working there know you. The cobble stoned streets. The smells.

I stopped in my tracks, smelling chocolate, and directed our feet to Honeydukes.

"We were here on the last trip to Hogsmeade!" Alice said between laughs.

"I ate all my chocolate already! You should know that Alice. I mean, we have been best friends for six years already."

The aroma just got stronger as we got closer to the tiny, candy filled shop.

"Hey! Alice! Lily! Over here!" I turned to see Frank Longbottom running towards us. I tried to keep on walking, but Alice was rooted to the spot, a blush already starting to dust her cheeks. I sighed, looking up at the heavens, trying to keep my patience.

Then I noticed the sky. Funny, it was all clouded today. No blue at all, even between clouds. It was like a light grey blanket covering the beautiful sky I'd seen just yesterday on the lawn.

I shook my head, bringing my head back to the present before I got too carried away in the memory of yesterday.

"Lily! Lily! Snap out of it! Jeez, I've been doing this all morning so far." Alice waved her hand in front of my face. " Frank saved us a table at the Three Broomsticks."

My eyes widened, and I swung my head to look at Honeydukes. I turned back and gestured towards it.

"Hey Alice, Frank, Ev…er…is Evans having a seizure or something?" Great. Just the voice I wanted to hear. I sent a glare at Potter, who had that stupid, devilish smirk on his face that was NOT handsome what so ever.

"No, I am not having a seizure Potter." I mumbled, and very unwillingly, followed Alice, who was pulling my towards the Three Broomsticks, away from the tempting, delicious chocolate.

The smells inside The Three Broomsticks was good, but not as mouthwatering as Honeydukes. The Marauders had decided to tag along with us, and ordered us all butterbeers.

I sat in the wooden chair, clutching my butterbeer, feeling my lower lip stick out just a tiny bit. But I wasn't pouting. I wasn't upset that we hadn't gone to get my daily need of chocolate. The delicious homemade Honeydukes chocolate that was even better than Cadbury chocolates…

Ok, maybe I was pouting.

Alice, of course, never took her eyes or attention of Frank, so guess who I was stuck with on the other side of the table.

Yup. Three immature sixteen year olds. They were joking about things that made me glare into my drink. Then they'd start talking about Madam Rosmerta's legs. Then Sirius' legs. (I didn't even want to listen to that, but unfortunately, I heard all of it, ). SO basically, all of the immature things you can think of.

Then I saw it. That look. On all three of their faces. That mischievous smirk, the glint in their eyes, and even how they tilted their heads.

No, I do not stalk them. More than anything they stalk _me._ I know this because I've had to deal with them for six years. Six _long _years.

"Oh Madam Rosmerta!" Sirius called in a sing songy voice. The bar owner whirled around to our table in the corner, her hand still amazingly balancing the tray in her hands, and smiled when she saw who'd called her over.

"What can I do for you Mr. Black?" she asked loudly across the room as she made her way across the floor.

When she got close enough, Black beckoned her down, and whispered in her ear. For all I knew, he could be whispering sweet nothings. It could be possible from his reputation. Just ask Professor McGonagall.

Rosmerta smiled, and hurried away. She was only gone a second, and came back with three straws. I couldn't help giving them the suspicious eye, that I only had learned to do in first year.

She came back with three straws. Was no one else in this place noticing those grins? Professor Sprout and Hagrid were only three tables away, and seeing nothing. _Absolutely nothing._

Sirius slipped his straw in the liquid…and started blowing bubbles in the butterbeer. Lupin immediately burst into a fit of laughter, following in suit, and James grinned, and started blowing the irritating bubbles as well.

How could I have even started to think of the _idea_ the Potter had possibly changed? Even slightly! Yesterday, he was…well, sort of different. Tolerable. That's the word I was looking for. Tolerable. And today, that tolerableness is long gone.

Of course, the only people who minded in the whole bar were the Slytherins scattered throughout the tables, and myself. I hated associating myself with them, but for once, we were both annoyed by the same thing. Cordelia Smith actually got up and left, with that disgusting, pinched, puggy face of hers.

Alice and Frank were laughing on the other side of me. Traitors. "Guys…seriously. It's not that funny." I nudged Potter, pushing his arms so he started laughing even harder, turning to me…

And spurted butterbeer all over me.

The bubbling stopped. And the laughter died down.

"Evans…Evans, I am- I can't even explain how sor-"

"Good. Then don't." I sent him my best glare, got up, and stormed out, shaking off the liquid as best as I could.

"Lils, wait!" Alice yelled after me. I couldn't even stop. I was starting to see red, whether I really was that angry, or my hair was in front of my face.

Once outside, I noticed it was cloudier, but I also noticed the smell wafting from Honeydukes was stronger and even more tempting.

I shook my head, making my hair fall back from my face. Just thinking of Honeydukes made my anger at Potter deflate slightly. But only slightly. And it wasn't just about the butterbeer. I'd actually had a good time with him yesterday, just looking up at the clouds.

And then he had to go and ruin it.

Then finally, I stepped into the glorious smelling shop. Having that aroma slip into my nostrils, just made my whole body relax, my eyes almost rolling back into my head.

There was such a huge selection, for such a tiny shop! Licorice Wands, Chocolate Frogs, Every Flavor Beans, (which I now stayed away from. A long story from second year, involving two sixth year Slytherins, Peeves, a blast ended skrewt, and who else, but the master minds behind this incident. The Marauders. They always ended up in these memories.)

"What's your favorite?" A deep voice came from behind me. I almost jumped in the air. I didn't have to turn to know who it was though.

"Go away." I mumbled, trying to brush past him. But he grabbed my arm, stopping me in my tracks. (That was tending to happen a lot lately when I was trying to get my candy.)

"Lily, please listen to me. I'm sorry. It was a complete accident. I'm so sorry."

Turning to meet those eyes, were the worst thing that happened to me that whole Hogsmeade visit.

His hazel eyes (which were reminding me of chocolate more by the minute,) were wide, like a little puppy dogs. He looked genuinely sorry. And I knew he was.

I lightly pulled my arm away from him, and he stuck his hands in his pockets, licking his lips nervously. It still baffled me that he cared so much whether I forgave him or not.

He still had those pleading puppy dog eyes that just make you want to give him a big bear hug…but that just would've been awkward.

"Milk chocolate." I whispered. James gave me that quizzical look with the one lifted eyebrow. I couldn't stop the small smile from gracing my face. "Milk chocolate is my favorite."

And here come the heart melting James Potter grin. The one he gave me yesterday. Because this was the James Potter that had watched the clouds with me yesterday. The different one. The tolerable one.

Don't ask me how I can tell the difference. Or why this James Potter makes me smile so much.

"What's your favorite then?" James seemed to debate that in his head, his eyes grazing over all of the selections.

"I'd have to say the dark chocolate frogs with the caramel in them." He answered thoughtfully, picking up one. "I really am sorry, Lily." he said again, the worry evident in my eyes.

I rolled my eyes playfully, "Don't worry about it Potter."

I filled one of the Honeydukes bags to the brim with my favorite little milk chocolate squares.

"That'll be three galleons." The cashier said. And before my hand was even at my pocket, six gold coins were thrown on the table. James just grinned at me, grabbing his own bag.

"May I escort you back to the castle?" He held out his arm, waggling his eyebrows Sirius style.

Rolling my eyes again, I nodded and took his arm. "That would be lovely."

The sky was almost dark, except for the pink ribbon streaming at the other end of town.

"I'll trade you one of your milk chocolates for one of my chocolate frogs." He offered. For some reason, the thought that he was still trying to make up for the incident in The Three Broomsticks.

I imitated his debating look from before. "Agreed."

I could really get used to this James Potter. If only he was around as often as the other identity. The one everyone else saw.


	3. Hot Showers

The cold water sent a shock through me as I turned the faucet on. It took awhile to for the water to warm up, but soon it was piping hot, and making my skin red where the water pattered against it.

Letting my auburn locks fall loose over my back, I sighed. Rosie and Alyssa always said I was weird, and slightly insane to take hot showers in the middle of summer. I must've been the only one in the whole school who would be using the warm taps this time of year.

Maybe I was a bit odd. Especially around James Potter lately. I could barely eat any of the delicious feast that night, what with eating all of the chocolates on the steps of the entrance hall with James. We'd gotten back earlier than we'd thought we would, and soon I found myself yet again, having a comfortable conversation with James Potter. That, unfortunately, seemed to be happening a lot lately.

The real unfortunate thing was that…I didn't seem to mind. Sometimes, in the middle of our conversations, a red warning flash would sound in my head, screaming and shouting _"What the bloody hell are you doing! This is James Potter!"_

But it would be smothered as soon James spoke again, his voice floating into my ears and making my walls crumble.

And that scared me. It seemed only not so long ago that I was yelling and screaming at him. And being able to confide in him about things made a weird feeling fill my stomach wasn't the all of the chocolate I'd consumed. I shouldn't feel so content with him. That's not how it was supposed to be.

He always ended up in my mind lately also. Usually I never noticed whenever he spoke in class, or talked loudly to his friends in the hallway, and now, all of the sudden, I was acutely aware of everything he did.

Is this how he had felt with her, since…well since forever?

_No! Because you don't feel any of those feelings for him!_

Lily scolded herself, shutting the shower off and squeezing her hair out.

Quickly drying off, and slipping into her pajamas, dawdling her way back to Gryffindor tower.

_Watch me run into Potter on the way towards the common room._

"Hey Evans!"

…_Wait, seriously? I was just kidding!_

"What is it Potte-" I said while turning and stopped dead.

I only knew too well who the short, greasy boy was standing in front of me.

"What do you want Snivelous?" instantly making my voice into a snarl.

The boy looked up at me, his usual glare fixed. How could I have been friends with this little…this little grease ball?

"I want to know what you were doing at Hogsmeade today." he said sternly.

"Why do you care?" I spat. Anything I ever said about Potter, it was doubly worse when it came to Severus Snape. Ever since my third year. I hated the bastard.

"Just answer the question Mudblood!" he growled through his teeth, leaning closer to me.

Him using 'Mudblood' didn't effect me anymore. He was the only one who used it anymore. Even Lucius Malfoy had backed off after awhile, because I'd ignored it. Malfoy liked his victims feisty.

I took a step back, reeling through the files in my brain for a comeback fit for a Marauder. "Move away Snape, don't get your Slytherin fumes all over me. And I'm not answering that question, because you didn't answer mine!"

Snape growled again, scowling at the floor. "Just…just tell Potter to stay away from you." he mumbled so quietly I almost didn't hear it. But when I did decipher the words, a whole flash of heat went through my body, that wasn't the warm water from the shower.

"_Excuse me_?" I said fiercely. He looked up again, his eyes surprised for some reason.

And then it hit me. What he was saying. What he was implying. "James is my friend. I can be around him if I want. And even if we _were _still friends, you wouldn't have a say in any of this! Now sod off Snape and I better not see your snivelly, greasy face around again!" I screeched. My hand was itching to slap his face so hard, the red mark would stay there for a week! But I just whirled around, making my wet hair splash him in the face, and stormed the rest of the way up to Gryffindor Tower.

Now I would've much rather run into Potter.

**A/N: Hello! Here's the third installment of The Little Things in Life! I know…kinda short, but the next chapter will make up for it!

Please R&R! Love you all! Thanks for reading!


	4. Getting Lost in Your Thoughts

I stretched my arms up to the ceiling, wiggling my aching fingers. How Professor Binns expected students to be able to focus on so many goblin wars everyday was beyond me.

I collapsed in a heap back onto the table, engaging in a staring contest with my essay. The last paragraph was the thing that had killed me, and made my hand start complaining of "unbearable pain."

Outside the window was quite dreary. It was a rainy day, so it should not have been that hard to focus on Zendel the Zealous and his tactics to bring his army up to par, but somehow the rain was becoming the best distraction. There was not even any thunder or lightening, just a never ending sheet of rain, pounding on the window.

Madame Pince brought me out of the small day dream as she snapped her wand in front of the drowsy face of Sirius Black. "There will be no sleeping in my library!" She said harshly. As she turned around, Sirius' face contorted as he mimicked her. The librarian whirled around, but Sirius was too quick for her. That charming smile that said 'Yeah, I was making fun of you but you didn't catch me now, did you?" struck his face.

Pince's eyes narrowed in his direction, and she slowly moved away again. Remus was trying very hard not to laugh, pressing his hand into his mouth. Peter was very busy with his carrots. But James was no where in sight.

Thinking of James brought the memories back from a few nights ago. _"Just…just tell Potter to stay away from you."_ My hand clenched tightly into a fist, that heated flash of anger returning.

_How dare he! Thinking he can just control my life. He has no right. _I had never forgiven the boy since the incident in fifth year, and he had never made a move to apologize. Then all of the sudden he just decides to put in his little opinion.

Like it mattered to me.

But it was not exactly the fact that he had tried to tell me what to do, but the fact that he had brought James into the situation. I could easily write off what he said about me, I had gotten used to that over the years, but the way he had said James' name…it just made me want to go hunt him down and maybe pull a whole goblin warfare tactic on him.

Sure, James had not acted that great to Snape before, but he had dropped the act a few years ago.

This whole situation put in me in a weird position, where I wanted to defend James. He was not all that bad.

_But then again, you didn't think that either just a few years ago._

I froze at that thought, my fingers freezing in mid air as I had started reaching for my paper again. Did I have any more right to be James' friend from how I had acted to him in the previous years?

My brow creased at this thought. Where was all of this coming from? I tried to shake the thoughts from my head, but they were clinging to the back of my brain, making if even harder to focus on my essay than before.

It was like I had just opened Pandora's Box at the back of my head. Damn it Pandora.

"Lily?"

My staring contest that had turned into glaring at my still unfinished essay was interrupted by the voice above my head. I shot by head backwards to see James smiling at me from behind me, leaning on the back of my chair.

"You okay?" He asked, his smile questioning my sanity. I looked at my essay, then back up at James.

"Um…" The thoughts became louder as he looked down at me with that quizzical brow. I nodded at him, my ability to speak temporarily disappearing.

He shot me another one of those smiles before he made his way over to his friends, whistling a tune under his breath.

I pushed away the thoughts again as I watched him walk away. He slammed a book down on the table, making Madame Pince glare again from over her Daily Prophet. James just winked at her, and fell back into his chair. He opened the book called "Goblins and Their War Games" and his eyes started skimming the page, unimpressed.

My head cocked to one side as I saw the title, and looking back at my forlornly short essay, it was a book I needed.  
Damn it Potter.

A/N: I should really be working on homework, but…well this just kind of popped into my head, and I had to update it! I'm just really getting back in the mood of this story, so forgive me guys!  
I'm on a Lily and James roll right now!


	5. Late NightsHumming

I'd given up. The common room was not the best place to get things done either, with people getting their bursts of energy after dinner. Second year girls were squealing about someone-or-another over in the corner, a group of guys had put together a game of Exploding Snap, which kept getting louder, so the people near my chair by the fire had to keep raising their voices just to hear each other.

Really it was like any other night in the Gryffindor common room.

Except the Marauders were again, absent from the scene.

They always added to half the noise when they were present, laughing obnoxiously loud at their own jokes.

Damn, Potter. He took my book.

I was very well aware that the book had been on the shelf, and I hadn't even gotten to that point in my essay, but that meant I would just have to stay up even later tonight.

And it was all Potter's fault.

I tried to remind myself that I had just been defending him against those bothersome thoughts before. I wasn't even angry at him. I was just angry that he was further on his essay than I was.

After awhile, people started to slowly trickle upstairs. Alice stopped over, her hand wound tightly with Frank Longbottom's, and asked when I planned on sleeping.

"I'll be up when I finish my essay." I told her, sounding impressively nonchalant for how much that very unfinished essay was taunting me from my book bag.

Alice gave me a skeptical look, but Frank, thank Merlin for him, pulled her away, bidding good nights as they went along.

Before long, the whole room was empty. It was eerie, how just moments ago the room seemed so small and crowded with noise, and now it seemed much bigger.

I'd never liked the quiet very much. For some reason it was harder for me to focus in the quiet. I needed some sort of white noise.

I found myself humming to myself as I wrote, and that is how the Marauders caught me.

They hadn't made a sound when they came in, which was very odd, because this late at night, the Fat Lady would have been rebuking them quite loudly.

But sure enough, a small chuckle came from the portrait entry way. My head shot up, and I could see Remus walking towards me, to go up to the dormitory, Sirius following in suit, trying to control his giggles.

I watched them walk by me, the humming dying in my throat. There was still that feeling of someone watching from behind me. I'll be damned if I didn't know who it was.

Turning, my eyes met the casual form of Potter, leaning back against the wall, giving me a strange smile.

"Can I help you Potter?" I inquired, damning my blush the whole time.

He smirked knowingly at me as he smothered his laughter. "Would you be so kind as to hum another lovely tune for me?"

I scoffed and turned back to my paper, frazzled as his laughter finally bubbled to the surface. He pushed away from the wall and sauntered over to me. "Really though, I wouldn't mind hearing those wonderful sounds come from your throat again."

My blush deepened as he sat down on the couch near me. "Oh, and I bet you want other sounds to come from my throat as well, don't you?" I asked him, the sarcasm seeping from my voice.

"Well, I wasn't really going to bring that up, but now that you mention it…" he leaned his elbows on his knees and closer to me.

"You know Potter I really have this essay to finish since you _stole _my book this afternoon, so it would be nice if you could leave me alone." I rolled my eyes at him, and stared back at my paper.

James didn't move a muscle. He just leaned back into the deep, plush couch, turning his head up towards the ceiling. I tried to ignore his presence, but no words would scratch out of my quill, no matter what.

"What do you think you are doing?"

His head came back up to face me. "Well, you're staying up late to finish it, but it's hard to do that by yourself. It's much easier to stay up late with somebody else. I'm just offering my services." That smug little smile came onto his face again, but I just couldn't bring myself to get annoyed.

When he made it clear he didn't plan on leaving that spot anytime soon, I decided to hone my focus in on the goblins creating a battle on my page.

Then, under the crackle of the fire, a hum came. Greensleeves. He was humming Greensleeves.

My eyes crept up from the parchment in front of me up to the boy. His eyes were closed, and the song was a mere rumble traveling up from his chest. There was a miniscule smile on his face as he hummed. I didn't really want to call it adorable, but that's what came to mind.

His humming was mesmerizing. The pitch was fantastic, but the low notes of it sent shivers up my spine.

That eyebrow of his slid up, and one eye peeked open at me. He never stopped humming as he gestured his chin down to my paper.

I smiled shyly, and bent my head back down, but once I knew he had turned back to the ceiling, my eyes looked up again.

White noise was one thing, it's easy to focus with that, but James Potter's humming was something different entirely. I couldn't put my attention on anything else.

I tried to just not look at him, and pay attention to a sleeping portrait, the smoldering embers of the fire that were left, my paper, anything. But that hum seemed to fill up my ears, and take away thoughts of anything else.

So again that day, I gave up.

I snuggled back into my chair, bringing my knees up and my essay aside and just listened to the beautiful sound.

That's the last thing I remember.

A/N: Well, that chapter was just supposed to be 'Late Nights', but then just the wonderful idea of James humming in that low voice…::shivers in delight:: I couldn't pass it up!...there were a lot of damns in this chapter….hmm.

Enjoy! Read and Review!


	6. Sleeping In

When my eyes finally blinked open, adjusting to the early morning grey, I was staring at the maroon curtains of my bed.

I was sunk deep into the mattress, and it seemed to keep sucking me in, promising another deep sleep, if I just closed my eyes again. I took a deep breath, debating whether to give into the mattress' demands or not, when I froze, my back arched up from the sheets.

This didn't smell like my pillow.

My fists came up to rub my eyes viciously, and I looked around again, paying more attention.

That wasn't my quilt either. I rubbed the material between my thumb and forefinger as I looked for a clock, but found a chest in my way. I looked up slowly, to James' sleeping face against the headboard.

I knew right away that I did not have the reaction I was supposed to. It had been in the movies I'd seen, and even some books that I'd read. When the girl finds herself in a boys' bed, with said boy next to her, they freak out, waking up the boy in the process, and cause many awkward conversations of what happened the night before.

Seeing that calm face of his though, I couldn't react like that. No fight or flight response, though I would be lying if I didn't say that my heart rate did increase slightly.

I remembered last night, with his deep humming. I must have fallen asleep, so he must have carried me up here. Unnecessary, since the furniture down in the common room is uncommonly comfortable to sleep on, but still sweet.

I smiled at his sleeping face as I sat up just like him, and made the move to get out of the bed, wincing as I saw how wrinkly my skirt looked. I'd have to perform a charm on it before classes today.

"Whereyougoing?" An extremely groggy whisper came. James' eyes were only opened to slits as he stretched his legs, pointing his toes. He fingers snuck under his glasses to wipe his eyes. It was quite cute.

"Back to my dorm," I replied, pulling on my shoes. "Unless you want people to think that something happened that really didn't last night." Sneaking a look from under my hair, I saw that smirk grow on his lips, and his eyebrows slide up. And there went the cuteness from before.

"I'm sure that I wouldn't mind such rumors," he whispered, his voice still hoarse from sleep.

I stood up, stretching my arms towards the ceiling. James wasn't really being sneaky with his staring. I punched his shoulder lightly, not in the mood to actually get riled up over a simple movement of an eyeball.

For how sleepy he looked, those Quidditch reflexes still worked like a charm as his hand snapped up and slid around my wrist. "Why don't you stay?" he almost pleaded, those hazel eyes taking on that little kid look again.

"Did I not just tell you? Sure, you might like those rumors, but I don't care for them." I knew that wasn't the reason why. Who would see us? Remus, Sirius, and Peter. Remus and Sirius were too loyal of friends to spread rumors, and Peter probably wouldn't even notice because he was too busy with his secret stash of food under his mattress. (Yes, I knew about the stash. As sneaky as Pettigrew thought he was, it wasn't that hard to guess during prefect inspections when there were chocolate stains on the bottom of the bedding.)

"Aw come on Evans," the little kid look was gone in a second, and his eyes took on an almost challenging gleam. "The bed is warm, and it's only," he paused as he twisted around, checking the clock I hadn't been able to see before. "It's only 5:30. We still have three hours. Just come here." He enticed, tugging very lightly, his touch almost impalpable.

A pro and cons list started setting itself up in my head. On the con side, yes, even if the boys in this dorm directly didn't tell, _someone_ could find out. I hadn't finished my essay, so if I left now, I could finish it in peace. On the pro side, the bed was warm. I had a good mark going in History of Magic right now, so it wouldn't be a big deal if I turned this one essay in late. And James' look was really pulling me in.

I sighed in defeat, and kicked my shoes off again as I climbed back into James' bed. His face took on a very triumphant look. He let go of my wrist, and leaned his head back against the pillow I'd been laying on. I pulled it out from under his head, laughing quietly as his indignant look, and replaced my head back in the shape that was still there.

I felt the pressure of him laying his head on the other side of the pillow behind my head, but just rolled my eyes. At least he was keeping his hands to himself, no matter if he was uncomfortably close.

Eventually, the mattress, and James for that matter, did get its desires quenched, as I fell into another deep sleep.

A/N: Don't you ever feel like beds really do this? On some days they're just always warmer than usual, and you don't want to ever leave…. I really hope that's not just me!

All the chapters are little things, but this one and the next one are related slightly, so you can look at this one as a "Part 1" if you wish.


	7. Playing Hooky

Either James Potter's bed was unnaturally comfortable, or he had put some sort of a charm on it.

Whatever that charm was, I'd have to ask him later, because those were the two best sleeps I'd gotten in a long time. Perhaps in my whole life time.

I stretched for the second time that day, letting out a humongous yawn as the sun shone down on my stomach, high in the blue sky.

The sun. Why was the sun up? My eyes flashed open in a pinch, and looked around the very bright room. I shot up, toppling a now awake James off of the bed.

"What time is it?" I shouted to no one in particular. Throwing my feet off the edge of the bed, I noticed that the other beds in the room were empty. Not exactly made, but empty.

"Merlin, what time is it!" I demanded again, searching for my shoes.

James, moving with the ability of a sloth, clutched the edge of the bed as he got up, wincing from the impact with the floor he'd had just a few moments ago. "Dunno…check the clock…" he rubbed his cheek, which was turning red.

I frantically ran around the bed, jumping over James, earning myself a strange look.

Ten. Ten o'clock in the morning. I'd already missed three of my classes. I'd slept in too late.

"Holy shit! NO!" I cried, leaping over, my foot slamming into his head in the process. He grunted, bringing his arms up to cradle his head.

I fought to get on my shoes, while bouncing around the room. I was wearing the same uniform I wore yesterday, but it would be ok, if not a little wrinkled.

Finally, the lazy bum got up off his arse, running a hand through his hair, and reaching blindly for his glasses. I quickly reached for them, placing them not very gently into his hands, and rushing to the bathroom for a mirror. My hair was a mess.

"What are you wigging out for?" His eyes still had that sleepy look about them, blinking from the light of the late morning.

I stared at him in the mirror, my hands attempting to fix the bird's nest that was my hair at the moment. "What am I wigging out for?" James flinched slightly at my tone. I knew that he was familiar with that tone, especially when I repeated a question he had just asked. "In case you hadn't noticed Potter, it is ten in the morning. We've already missed three classes, and are presently missing another one at this very moment!" My voice was gradually growing louder, almost getting to screeching level. Giving up on my hair, I turned to shoot him a disapproving look.

"I know very well that you have missed classes very much, but I am not about to miss class."

"I've never seen you like this. Merlin, you need to calm down." He said, his voice gaining back a little bit of that hint of mischief as he finally woke up.

"You're not understanding, James!" I could feel the adrenaline running through my veins, the urgency of being late settling in. "I've never missed a class. Never. Ever since first year, I have never missed a single minute of class. Never been late, never been sick, I have always been present! Do you know what this will do to my record?" I noticed I was shouting again, and tried to get myself to calm down.

"Well, I guess it's about time to start." He offered, and sauntered out of the bathroom doorway. All I could do was stare at the spot he had just vacated.

"What the bloody hell is that supposed to mean?" I stomped out of the bathroom after him, my voice deciding that it was going to refuse to quiet down right now.

"Lily, sometime you need a good day off. I mean, look how stressed you were about a silly little essay?" Silly little essay my arse, that thing was one of our last ones of the school year. And I'd blown it off. I felt like kicking myself, especially for letting James be the thing to distract me from it.

Something tugged at my stomach, reminding me that I was the one who let him distract me, so technically it was my fault. I tried to ignore that, and make the anger come up against James, but it wasn't coming. I couldn't bring myself to glare at the boy. This is a new, strange turn of events.

"James, I don't have time for this." I tried to make the way to the door out of the dormitory, but James blocked it. Maybe I couldn't bring myself to be angry at him, but I could definitely still feel annoyance at him. "James," I began dangerously, but he didn't let me finish.

"Stay here." He said, sounding much like he did this morning, when the sky was still grey. His tone pulled at me again, and I just pictured that sleepy James, holding onto my wrist.

"I'd feel guilty." I whispered, looking anywhere but him.

"Then blame it on me." He said easily, shrugging his shoulders.

"James, I'm not going to lie!" I objected, trying to get around him.

"Come on Lily," he got that pleading voice again, yet somehow he managed to not sound like a whiny git. The plea sounded very…masculine. I shook my head at that thought, almost shuddering at how fuzzy my brain was becoming around the boy.

Pushing at his shoulder, I moved past him. As the doorknob spun in my hand, I heard him groan from behind me. I glanced at him from over my shoulder. He was clutching his stomach, and his face was scrunched up, making his glasses shift down his nose a little bit. I pushed away the thought that said it was cute. "I don't feel so good Lils," he mumbled, rubbing his stomach.

An eyebrow raised up my forehead at him. He gave me a pointed look, "I'm going to need someone to take care of me." He whispered, the painful voice evaporating into that mischievous tone again.

I just looked at him for awhile, watching him hold his stomach, but smirk at me the whole time. My conscience kept telling me I could still make the end of Transfiguration, with no problem.

But then there was a dangerous voice, which was quieter than my conscience, but at the same time, more tempting, telling me to see what would happen. That I've had a good record the whole time, everyone deserves a sick day…

"Why do you want me to stay so badly?" I inquired, honestly curious. He'd done the same thing this morning, when I could have easily left.

He seemed to have heard my thoughts with his next answer. "Why do you keep giving in?" It was almost a perfect imitation of my question, just in a more dangerous tone.

This boy was trouble, and I knew it. I'd known it since first year. Yet here I stood, one foot in the hall, ready to head to class, taking the embarrassment. The other, still in the dormitory, wondering what the consequences would be.

He raised an eyebrow at me, asking for my decision.

I'd never skipped classes. That was Petunia that got letters from school, saying she was not present in class for three days in a row. I was the one that my parents praised for "how good I acted" all the time.

"_Good job Lily, we're so proud of you." _Dad had said, his smile filled with the pride he had referred to.

"_If only your sister was this responsible."_ Mum had sighed as she held my report from the last year.

Petunia had sent my a loathing look, her eyes narrowed, and shooting at me. She'd hated me that day. _"You're just such a goody little two shoes aren't you? Mummy and Daddy's little baby!" _Her eyes blazed as she started prancing around in the breakfast nook. _"Oh look! I'm Lily Evans! I've never done anything wrong! I'm little miss perfect!" _She'd spit out at me.

I remembered feeling pretty happy that day. I liked praise from my parents. But who didn't? At this moment though, Petunia's perspective was hitting me.

James must have been watching me fight this internal battle, because he broke me away from that day.

"Well?"

My head cleared, and he formed in front of my eyes again.

Petunia's spirit must have just been hovering over my shoulder. Or maybe I was just tired of this little battle.

"So what is it that you would have planned if I did stay today?" I asked, sliding my foot back into the boy's dormitory, making my choice.

Or maybe I made that decision just to see that grin shape on James' mouth again.

A/N: WOW! Here's one to make up for the shortness of the last one! Maybe there'll just have to be a part three…hmm.

I hope you enjoy this chapter guys!


	8. Your Favorite Song on the Radio

I was still trying to figure out how I had possibly let James Potter persuade me into doing this, even as I chopped the apple into tiny little pieces.

The radio was blaring music so loud over the smell of variations of breakfast foods being baked all over the kitchen, I was afraid that someone was about to come down and start berating us. Yet James seemed completely unworried.

I'd never known where the kitchens were, but right after I'd asked what we were going to do, his immediate answer was "First, we need breakfast," and he'd taken me on an obstacle course of hallways that I hadn't even known existed. He'd tickled a pear, and the portrait had swung open, much to my surprise, offering so many delicious smells from the opening.

I also had not been aware that James could cook. I didn't think there was a single cooking skill in him, but seeing him flip those omelets so expertly…well I couldn't very well doubt that now.

"What should I do now?" I turned to him, rinsing my hands in the large sink. He flipped another egg. Distracted with the frying, his eyes flowed over the ingredients scattered over the table.

"Err…" he searched. "Salsa. We need salsa." He sounded like he was giving orders to an army. I saluted in turn, and went to search for the object.

It was strange to think that everybody was upstairs sitting in class, while I was marching through the kitchens, looking for salsa. I could practically see Alice and Frank throwing the wad of notes back and forth. Peter practically drooling over his notes, as he almost fell asleep. Sirius and Remus would be mimicking Professor McGonagall and having a sword fight with their quills that James would usually be adding to. The smile just formed on my lips without me controlling it.

I was actually skipping class. And enjoying it. A tiny cackle fell from my lips.

The salsa was behind pumpkin pasty mixes just on the shelf that I couldn't reach. I looked around for something to stand on, and my eyes fell upon a small stool. Climbing up on it, I could still barely reach it. A pasty mix fell on the floor as my fingers grappled for the jar, and pulled it towards the edge.

"You got that?" his voice came behind me.

I swung my hand down triumphantly, turning to show the jar to the boy, but the stool wobbled. "Uh-oh," I mumbled, as I felt my feet were jostled by it. I put my hand out to stop me as I leapt from the stool and ran right into James.

His arms caught my shoulders, steadying me. I actually felt him chuckling. "You got that?" he whispered, this time mockingly.

I frowned up at him. "Yes. I'm fine." I put my chin up, though I could already feel the red splotches forming on my face as I marched back to the piles of ingredients, hearing him laugh again as he followed me out of the pantry.

I was about to ask him how the omelets were coming, when familiar voices came over the radio speakers. It was filled with static, but I could recognize that song anywhere. Rushing over to the small radio, I turned the knob to make the station more in tune.

A squeal arose in my throat, and I turned the volume knob up even higher. "This is my song!" I shouted, setting the jar onto the counter as I started to sway to the music, singing right along with the words.

James' eyes were following me as I danced. I knew I wasn't very good at dancing, and probably looked like a fool, but I couldn't bring myself to care. The only reason that my blush was deepening was really because of how deep his eyes were watching me twirl about.

As I was finally losing the excitement of hearing the song on the radio, and slowing my dancing, he came up out of nowhere in front of me, and slipped his hands into mine. I let out an embarrassing snort as his smile came in front of my eyes.

"Hello there!" I greeted, as he started swaying along with me.

He greeted back by starting to sing along with the song in my ears, sending a trail of shivers down my neck.

His hands made my skin feel like it was burning, but I played along. I twirled around the kitchen with him, letting my smile grow as we went.

"I've got arms that long to hold you, and keep you by my side." He sung. His singing voice reminded me of his humming, and made that little coil show up in my stomach again. "I've got lips that long to kiss you, and keep you satisfied." I giggled as his voice tickled my ear.

Right as the last chorus was finishing up, James dipped me down. I threw my head back with it, not even trying to stop my laughter from finally bubbling up to the surface. It felt good to be laughing so much today. When my head came back to its usual spot, he was right there.

I froze as his gaze flitted across my face. I could have sworn that my heart, which had been pounding from my dancing, had come to a dead stop. This was much closer than he'd ever been.

He looked different from this angle somehow. His eyes didn't look as mischievous, just curious as they ran over my facial features. From this close I could see laugh lines in the corner of his eyes, behind his glasses. His nose was soft as it knocked lightly against mine.

There was no smirk shaped on his lips. They were parted slightly, as mine were. But they looked soft as well.

My vision became blurry as those lips said something, but I couldn't quite hear. I'd turned the radio up too much during the song, and the next song was far too loud. My focus stayed on those lips though, as they seemed to move ever closer.

The beeping sound sliced through the kitchen, making me jump in James' arms, and him have to hold on tighter so I didn't fall on my bum.

Both of our heads turned towards the stove, where two omelets were steaming nicely in the pan, completely cooked. I felt James slowly bring us up out of the dip, our eyes still fixed on the interrupting stove.

It beeped again. I caught myself starting to glare at the stove.

"I better get those, unless we want burnt eggs." James mumbled, moving away from me. He ran a shaky hand through his hair as he practically dashed over to the stove.

The kitchen was warm because of the stove being on, but for some reason, I felt a little chilly. I could barely make my legs moved, my knees wobbling as I moved to follow him.

Aside from my shaking legs, there was no evidence that anything had happened. James had turned the radio down, and he was readying plates. I scooped the salsa on top of the eggs and the apples I'd sliced onto the side.

I refused to make eye contact as we both went over to the high chairs with our breakfasts, which were more like brunches considering the time.

Scooping the first bite into my mouth, I kept my head down. James nudged my arm from the other side of the table, and I jumped as I looked up at him. His eyes glinted at me, and that smirk was back, even though at the corners of my mind, they were still slightly parted in front of me. "Let me know what you think." He offered.

I guess my laughter wasn't done for the day.


	9. Being in a Favorite Place

Picking up my novel of the week, I sneaked out the doorway before my room mates woke up. I let out a sigh or relief when the door clicked shut and there were no rustling noises from the other side.

Alice hadn't let me drop the subject for days. She'd bring it up at any chance she could find.

"This assignment for Binns is going to be impossible." Frank groaned, letting his forehead drop to the desk.

"Speaking of Binns," Alice said, very casually, but then whirled on me, her face full of suspicion. "Where were you yesterday?"

I'd acted innocent, even though my blush probably was a dead give away, and simply agreed with Frank's sentiments. She was still trying to discover what I had done yesterday as much as I was trying to evade her. Her questions had gotten the attention of my other room mates, Marlene and Alyssa, and they had started questioning it as well.

A small smile slipped over my mouth as I skipped down the steps. I hadn't bothered to change out of my pajamas, since it was Saturday. It was already nine, but people were sleeping in late this morning. I'd already done my fair share of sleeping in, so I wasn't surprised when I'd woken up early this morning.

Walking through the empty hallways brought my thoughts back around to the other day.

James had led me through the hallways that were eerily empty. It was strange to think that there were classes going on behind the doors that we were passing. We'd actually almost been caught by Filch, but James had slipped his hand into mine, making me jump. He pulled us into a tiny alcove that I would not have been able to see otherwise, and we waited for the crotchety old man to pass by. James had waggled his eyebrows at me when we were squeezing out of the alcove, and I was glad Filch had passed by long ago, because my laugh had barked out loud.

The deserted halls were definitely not as exhilarating as that day. The morning light gave them a very innocent, still look. My feet were starting to feel numb, and I cursed that I hadn't thought to put on my slippers before leaving.

I peaked around the corner, knowing I was almost there, and dashed around, really hoping not to run into anybody. I'd run into Professor Dumbledore one time, and that hadn't been bad or anything, but it was a very strange encounter. He'd offered me a lemon drop, and said that the day still had excitement that was yet to come. Then he'd giggled to himself, and kept on his way.

Finally after rounding another corner I was there. I reached my hand out to grip a brick that was protruding ever so slightly from the wall, and pulled myself up. It really was a perfect set up. The bricks that stuck out were at perfect intervals just enough to climb up the wall. I'd begun to think it was done on purpose. This must have been someone else's spot before it was mine.

Tossing my book over the edge, I pulled myself up, letting out a heavy breath.

It really was the most perfect little spot. It was high over the hallway, so no one could see up here from the ground. A circular window fit into it, showing the Forbidden Forest, which was filled with fog this morning. I'd discovered it in my second year, and it had become my favorite place ever since.

I opened my book, and kicked back, finally able to relax. I hadn't gotten to read all week, and quickly got engrossed in the novel. My mother always teased me for how involved I got in my books. She said that I always looked dazed after I was done reading, like I had just come back from an alternate universe.

She must have been right in some way, because I did not notice the sun creeping higher in the sky. I did not notice someone turn the corner of the hallway. And I definitely did not notice someone climbing up the wall.

Not until their hand clamped down on my leg that is.

My book flew up in the air as a scream ripped from my throat. The hand disappeared over the edge, with a yelp. Then a thud. Then a groan.

I'd brought my knees up and shrunk against the window, my eyes wide. I broke from my position, and looked warily over the edge. Sprawled on the ground below, the boy ran a hand through his hair as he sat up, his eyes tightening as he winced in pain.

"James!" I gasped. He looked up at me, his hand going to rub his neck tenderly. He had survived quite the fall.

"Hullo." He mumbled.

I scrambled over the edge, almost losing my footing a time or two on my way down. "Are you okay?" I asked, running my eyes over his body. Nothing looked broken, but he was most definitely bruised.

"I'm fine Lily." He said, staring at me strangely.

"No you're not. That is a long drop. You might not feel it now, but there could be internal bleeding. Your spine might be damaged. How did you land? Did you pull a muscle? Are you-" I was silenced by his finger, which very gently pressed against my lips.

"I'm fine," he repeated. I nodded slightly, and felt glad in a way when his finger slid away from my lips. It had made me freeze up. He struggled as he tried to get up, hissing through his teeth as he clutched the wall for support. I clambered up in order to let his arm slip around my shoulders to help him. He said something under his breath that sounded an awful lot like "I knew she was dangerous." I decided to ignore that comment, though it didn't stop the warming of my cheeks.

We leaned against the wall when he finally stood up straight. He was looking at me strangely again. "What?" I asked, ducking my head low.

"What were you doing up there?" I looked up, staring at the wall across the hall. His arm was heavy over my shoulders.

Shrugging, I just answered "Reading."

"Why up there?" _Why the twenty questions?_ I wondered, but answered him still.

"It's the only place to get some peace and quiet. _Some people_ have been asking nonstop questions about where I was the other day." I emphasized that last part, sending him a knowing glance. He only smirked.

"Why were you going up there?" I decided to add to the list of questions he was creating. He shrugged.

"I didn't feel like just lying in bed." My cheeks warmed up even further thinking of the other morning, when he _had_ just wanted to lie in bed.

We stayed silent for a little while after that, when I remembered something. "Crap. I left my book up there." I sighed, letting my gaze lead up to the ledge above us. James' gaze followed mine.

His smirk reappeared with full blast. "We'll just have to go get then." He whispered.

"You're injured!" I tried to object, but he pulled us both around, him having the advantage with his arm around me.

He blew off my outburst though. "Together." He stated, grabbing a brick. I just stared at him. The boy was out of his mind. But he made no move to back down. Rolling my eyes, I grabbed a brick as well.

It was definitely more difficult to climb up with someone attached to you, but against all odds, we made it. He was still smiling like an idiot when we settled on the ledge, leaning against the window. I had a right mind to believe that he wasn't in that much pain anymore, but my arm would not move to push his off my shoulders.

I grabbed my book, and tucked it under my arm. "Ready?" I sat forward.

James cocked his head to one side. "We just got up here."

"I didn't know you'd been planning on staying up here."

He just narrowed those hazel eyes at me, silently issuing a challenge, and he leaned back even more against the round wall of the cove.

"You said you wanted to read, and we both came here to stay up here didn't we?" He whispered, his eyes never moving from mine.

_You're giving in again. _My mind reminded me as I leaned back with him, but I ignored it, letting his arm pull me even closer. I don't think I was supposed to notice that. I also knew that I wasn't supposed to be comfortable with James' arm around me. But when he sighed next to me, letting his eyes fall closed, I let my book fall open again, and my eyes wandered down the lines of words just like before.

Somehow, I didn't mind sharing my favorite place with him.


	10. Hiccups

The first day after the weekend, Professor McGonagall had lined up a pop quiz. As expected, the whole class was absolutely thrilled. Moans and groans of disappointment came from the back of the room, but the Professor simply ignored them as she passed out the pieces of parchment for all of us. I could have sworn the Frank Longbottom's face actually turned a shade of green.

I wasn't exactly overjoyed at this quiz either. Usually, pop quizzes did not bother me. I could finish them without even breaking a sweat.

But thanks to a certain black haired boy, I had missed the notes for the new unit. I clenched my teeth as I swallowed heavily down my throat that was now suspiciously dry.

My fingers were threatening to snap my quill in half when she pressed the paper down on my desk. There was now nothing that could be swallowed, my whole mouth going dry. I tried to make myself calm down. It was a small quiz. Professor McGonagall never considered them high points. That thought did not by any means stop my nerves from jumping up.

I've noticed that people do different things when they get nervous. My sister, Petunia, starts shaking like a leaf when she gets nervous. My mother smiles far too largely and pretends to be super happy. Alice starts pulling at her fingers. James runs his hand through his hair.

Those all made no noise.

I've also noticed that when I get nervous, I get the hiccups.

My fist pressed against my mouth as I silently prayed that no squeaking sound would escape my mouth.

"Turn over your papers and begin." McGonagall announced as she sat with authority at her desk, watching the whole room with narrowed eyes. She could catch any movement out of the corner of her eyes, reminding me scarily of the cat that she could become.

I turned my page over with one hand and read the first question. My panic mellowed after that one, but the following ones brought back the dreaded feeling of my throat closing. Clenching my eyes shut, I tried hard to focus on the question and push back the feeling rising in my mouth.

I felt the tingling die down, and with a sort of wariness, brought my fist down from my lips.

"_Hic!"_

My eyes probably looked like huge orbs, as they widened in surprise and shock. I thought it was gone! Every eye in the room turned towards me, and I could hear some giggles coming from around the room. Many dismissed it, while some were still laughing at my expense. Then another one came. _"Hic!" _I pressed my lips together. Now I was getting the evil eye from Professor McGonagall. I smiled apologetically, and looked down at my paper, feeling my face flame.

"_Hic!"_ By this one, people were starting to give me those exasperating looks. The giggles were gone, and the scoffs began. _"Hic!"_ I sank lower in my seat, trying to cover my face with my hair, like it actually would hide me from their gazes. _"Hic!"_ They were making my whole body shake now, and my chair was jumping off the ground.

Professor McGonagall looked as if she was about to say something, probably to dismiss me from the class for disruption, but then her eyes widened.

Hands came down on my shoulders roughly, and a voice whispered "Gotcha," into my ear. I hic-screamed as I shot forward, nearly falling out of my chair.

I whirled in my chair, and came face to face with glittering hazel eyes behind glass.

"Mr. Potter! What are you doing out of your seat and disrupting our class!" McGonagall demanded, looking ready to pounce across her desk.

James stood straight up behind my chair, a knowing smirk growing on his face. "My apologies, Professor. But it is common knowledge that hiccups need to be scared out of people." He sounded as if he were an expert.

McGonagall looked directly at me, and then all eyes were glued to me. I just stared up at James. A minute passed. James looked up at the Professor, his face very smug. She rolled her eyes. "Yes, yes Mr. Potter. Now please sit down and stop distracting my class?" James sauntered back to his seat, his hands in his pockets.

Mumbling began to spread through the room, and McGonagall tapped her wand on the desk. "Quiet! Finish your tests please!"

I snuck a look back at James, who was looking right at me. I mouthed a "Thank you," to him. He smiled at me, giving me a flash of his teeth.

Finishing the quiz made my stomach tighten, but no hiccups came again. When class was dismissed, I gathered my books, and followed the crowd at a distance, with giggles about hiccups still reaching my ears.

I didn't have to look when I felt someone come up next to me. "Hello James." I greeted. I could practically feel his smile.

"Good morning, Lily." His voice was hanging with laughter, and I knew that he was pressing back the urge to tease me.

We walked in silence down to the dungeons for Potions, and as we got to the staircase, I turned to him. "Thanks again." He got that smile again.

"No problem, my fair lady." He bowed, and grabbed my hand to kiss it. I pulled my hand away just as his lips were about to reach it, and he stumbled forward a little, a smile pulling at his lips. The smile disappeared as a hiccup ripped from his throat.

We both stared at each other for a moment, and he hiccupped again. I could not control the laughter that popped out, and I pressed my fist to my mouth yet again.

He gave me a mock accusing look, and started shaking his head. "You little bugger," he whispered, though somehow he made that sound like a compliment.

We started down the stairs together, sniggering every time he hiccupped on the way down.


	11. Making Chores Fun

Professor McGonagall was clenching her fists in her fury, her eyes filled with disappointment as she looked over me. Professor Dumbledore actually looked like something was funny. James stood beside me nonchalantly, an un-worried expression on his face.

"I am very disappointed. It is nearly the end of the year! Mr. Potter, I am not that surprised, but Miss Evans! I expected more!" McGonagall had been spluttering things like this since we'd entered the office.

It had eventually been discovered that James and I had committed truancy the other day. I knew it was not a good thing, but I didn't think it was this big of a deal, to make McGonagall's face turn that red. My shoulders were slumped, but I tried to keep my head up, even as I stared out the window behind the Professor's shoulder.

James was used to this kind of thing. In fact, he looked as if he were enjoying this. McGonagall and Dumbledore went back and forth, Dumbledore trying to calm the woman down. The other teachers hadn't thought that much of it, basically saying "It's your work to make up." McGonagall must have been freaking out because we were actually in her house and it made her look bad.

"This at least calls for a detention!" I froze up at that proclamation. I'd never had a detention. My record was clear. I finally looked directly at my teachers. Professor Dumbledore was studying the both of us with a knowing expression, taking in my incredulous look and James searching the ceiling for something.

"…Maybe it would be good for them." My jaw would have dropped if I hadn't been clenching it so hard. He agreed with her?

"Professor, please." I moved forward from my spot. Professor McGonagall looked defeated in a way.

"I am sorry Miss Evans, but you are not above punishment." She looked almost angry with herself that she had to write my name on the detention slip. My stomach sank all the way down to my ankles as she did. She handed us both a parchment, and we were dismissed.

As soon as the door shut behind us I stormed ahead in the direction of the Great Hall, where we'd missed half of lunch.

"Hey! Lily, wait!" His footsteps came up beside me, but I made no motion that I had heard him at all. I could feel his gaze on me, but I watched my feet as I walked. James sighed next to me. "I didn't think they'd find out. They usually don't care that much. Just calm down, alright?" My feet stopped as if I was one of the Queen's guards.

"Calm down?" James could sense the dangerous tone in my voice, for he moved back from me slightly. "You want me to calm down?" I looked him straight in the face, and behind his glasses, his hazel eyes had no more nonchalance left. "Oh sure, I'll calm down Potter! This is just my first detention ever!" My voice reverberated down the hallway, making the suits of armors turn to see what the commotion was. James' eyebrows tried to meet in a frown.

"Lily, its one detention. It'll be ok." He ran a shaky hand through his hair, as he looked down the hallway. Realization practically punched my in the gut.

He felt guilty. He was taking the whole blame upon himself. Remorse filled me for shouting at him before. I backed down a little, looking the same way James was.

"You could at least apologize." I mumbled, the remorse nagging at me even more, though I still felt like I needed to justify my detention.

His hand came down from his hair. "Apologize?" I looked back at him, his tone surprising me. "Apologize for what, exactly?" Now he was the one who looked angry.

Despite him throwing me off now, I stood my ground. "Yes apologize. It's _your _fault that I actually have a detention. And my record is ruined now!"

"Your record means that much to you Evans?" He had to keep pushing his glasses back up because of how he was looming over me.

I scoffed at him. "As a matter of fact it does. Unlike you, I actually care about school."

Whirling away from him, I started off again.

"You think I don't?" He yelled after me. Huffing, I ignored him. I didn't hear his footsteps behind me again, and I didn't stop.

-x-

"You know Lily detentions aren't that big of a deal. People get them all the time! And it's not like anybody really looks at that record, they just care that you pass your classes."

Dinner had been a tense affair. I had purposely sat as far away as I could from the Marauders, and James hadn't even looked up when I had walked in.

Alice was trying to make me feel better, but for once she was not doing a very good job. She'd had a detention before. That didn't mean she'd told me what it had been for, but I guessed that it was because she and Frank had been caught after hours when they were supposed to be patrolling, but that wasn't as bad as skipping classes.

I glared down at my text book, trying to finish my homework before my…punishment at seven.

Frank, again thank Merlin for him, distracted Alice from her efforts to cheer me up by asking her help with his work.

Pinching my quill between my fingers, my thoughts wandered again to the incident this afternoon.

James and I had been getting along well for quite awhile now. I mean how could we not be? It bothered me that we had gotten in such an idiotic argument.

When the long hand was just hovering around quarter to seven, I slammed my book shut. Alice looked up at me, giving me a small smile. "Don't worry." She assured me as I exited the common room.

Right outside Filch's office, I hesitated. _Here goes,_ I took a deep breath, and gathered as much dignity as I could when I turned the doorknob.

Filch sat hunched behind his desk, and Mrs. Norris was sitting on his shoulder. Her red eyes pierced me as I walked in and it was all I could do to prevent a shudder from visibly going down my spine. I refused to give a cat that pleasure.

He sniffed, rubbed under his nose, and stood up. His fingers were in ripped gloves and he wore his giant trench coat even down here. I didn't blame the guy. The office, if you could call it that, was a drafty old place.

"Evans. You're early." It sounded like he was accusing me of it, while any other adult in the place would have praised me for it. Now I regretted even leaving the common room.

"Er…yes." This was all I could make out. The man looked up at his clock, which still read 4:10. He clouted it on the top, and the hands swiveled to the proper time. Exactly 7:00.

"Maybe not. Well, just make yourself comfortable. Mr. Potter will be taking his dear sweet time coming down here." Filch grumbled as he scuttled back behind his desk.

I avoided Mrs. Norris' eyes, as I walked over to the only other chair in the room, but as I drew nearer, I saw that the seat of it had fallen through. My nose scrunched, and I just stood next to the wall, listening to Filch mumble things to himself as he looked over his papers.

Minutes later, James entered the room like he owned the place. "Good evening Filchy!" He greeted nicely, sauntering his way over to the desk that looked like it was about to collapse. His hand reached out to scratch Mrs. Norris' greasy fur, but she snapped her jaws at him as he did.

"Ah, in a better mood I see Mrs. Norris."

Filch stood up, knocking his chair back. I wasn't sure if he was so angry because James had disturbed his silence, or if he had dared to try and touch his cat.

"Potter! You're late!" That seemed to be all the man could say. James smirked.

"Fashionably though, aren't I?"

I found myself rolling my eyes at him again. The arrogant git. I'd forgotten how he could be from the past few weeks.

Filch just grumbled again, and he made his way out of the doorway. James still didn't look at me, but he gestured for me to go first. It looked like Mrs. Norris was going to hold down the fort, for she sat down on the desk and glared at us as we walked out.

We followed the old caretaker down maze of dungeon hallways until he stopped at a doorway I knew well.

"The prefect's bathroom?" I inquired as he opened the door. Filch looked back at me as if speaking out of turn was punishable by death.

Inside, there were buckets, mops, and rags. "For your detention, the professor's agreed to have you clean this bathroom. The detention will be over once the place is clean, and I will check every corner." He looked pointedly at James as he said this. Filch shuffled between the two of us back out to the door. "Don't even think about leaving, or _I_ will get to enforce my own punishment, and you'll be hanging by your toenails in the basement!"

He slammed the door behind him, and his dragging footsteps could be heard for quite awhile afterwards, keeping his threat alive in the room.

Turning to the cleaning materials, I rolled up my sleeves, and grabbed a mop. I was about to turn to James and say that I could get the floor, but he was already grabbing a bucket and rag. I had to hand it to the guy, he may have a list of detentions that was longer than the tables in the Great Hall, but at least he did what they called for.

At first, it wasn't bad. I just ignored that fact that I was doing it as a punishment, and that I was mopping for fun. Yeah…for fun. But one can only convince themselves that for so long.

An hour in, I leaned against the mop, tired. I'd never noticed how big this bathroom was until I'd actually had to mop it.

It must have been ten o'clock by the time the floors and sinks were done, and the humongous tub was left. James turned on the faucets for the water and grabbed another rag. He rolled his pant legs up and took off his shoes.

Apparently he'd done this before, so I followed in suit.

The lack of speech was really starting to irritate me. He didn't seem angry anymore, but he was still refraining from having to talk to me.

We waded in the calf deep water, scrubbing the walls and floor of the tub. I kept watching him out of the corner of my eye, as he kept adjusting his glasses so they wouldn't fall off of his nose. That remorse was back.

The sound of scrubbing filled the room, echoing around the walls. Even the mermaids on the wall weren't paying us any attention. We weren't interesting enough.

As it kept going on, the work was getting harder. I actually was breaking into a sweat. I could feel James' eyes on me as I stood up, and wiped my hands on my shirt so I could tie my hair up.

I would make him talk. I didn't want to go back to the cold shoulder, acquaintance stage of friendship. I liked the stage we were at now.

Slowly, I reached down for my rag, and dunked it in the water, then threw it at him.

It missed, but it definitely caught his attention. His eyes widened as he turned to look at the rag that was slowly sinking down the wall. He looked over to me, and for the first time in my life, I was grateful to see that old smirk back on his face.

"Really?" he asked, standing up as well, and balling his rag up. His hit the wall as well as I jumped out of the way, with giggle that had become so familiar lately threatening to overflow again.

I peeled his off of the wall, and actually took the time to aim this time. It hit him on the side of his face. I couldn't hold back the laughter when he removed it and soap covered his glasses. He had to take them off, and there were perfect frames of foam around his eyes.

The laughter came up and it felt so good. He darted for me, and I slipped in the water. He fell over me, and we were both laughing so hard, tears were coming out of my eyes.

Silence had taken over the bathroom again, and James looked down at me, his eyes again with the curious gleam.

"I'm sorry." I felt my eyes widen. My hand went up to press against his chest so I could sit up. He didn't move.

"You don't have to be." I whispered, feeling my cheeks get warm. "It wasn't your fault. I had a choice, and it was my decision to stay," his mouth opened to protest, but I didn't let him. "Maybe I needed a detention."

He looked shocked at what I had just said, and I had to smile. "I'm the one that should be sorry."

A small smile made its way over James' lips. "Nah, it's in the past." We both chuckled slightly, but our gazes never left each other's. It felt wonderful to be like this again, and that made me feel a little nervous.

"Well, at least you got it clean." James was off of me in a second, and we both were looking up at Professor McGonagall. She looked far from disappointed now, with a secretive smile on her face.

"What are you two waiting for? You are dismissed." James and I scrambled out of the tub, and grabbed our shoes as we left.

At least I wasn't the only one blushing.


	12. Realizations

**A/N: So technically, this one could be split up into two, which would be the title of this chapter and 'Falling Asleep on Someone's Shoulder'. I was going to make them separate chapters, but the shoulder one would've been far too short!

Everyone was on their way to Hogsmeade for the day, but some shenanigans had delayed the progress in the Entrance Hallway.

Three horses wandered the hallway, budging their noses on student's shoulders and lifting their tails to do inappropriate business on the stone floor.

The water trough that had been hovering above only moments ago had spilled muddy water mixed with hay all over the students a ways in front of Alice and I. They all were stumbling about, trying to wipe their eyes free of mud. I rolled my eyes at the scene while Alice giggled beside me. One student ran into a suit of armor, which tried to reach out and help him as he fell down.

Once we passed the chaos, the culprits were right there, lounging on the wide window sill. Sirius and Peter had farmer's hats and James and Remus had pieces of wheat sticking out of the corners of their mouths. All of them had slipped jean overalls over their school robes.

"Howdy, Evans!" James stole Peter's hat just so he could tip it at me with a smirk, which made the wheat tip up. My cheeks warmed slightly, and I allowed a small wave in his direction.

As Alice and I turned the corner towards the humongous doorway, we heard Professor Sprout shriek from behind us. I started laughing into my fist, trying not to be too obvious since there were still some muddy students around us. Alice looked at me odd, all traces of giggles gone.

"What?" I asked, her look really starting to make me feel uncomfortable.

She looked straight ahead again, "Since when did Lily Evans think the Marauder's pranks were funny?" Her gaze turned incriminating. I stopped walking in the middle of the hallway, making a seventh year scowl and have to stalk around me. Alice turned on her heel to look back at me.

"What?" I repeated my tone turned from annoyed to incredulous. "It's childish! They're childish! I mean it was funny…but still!" I tried to cover it up, denying my fit of giggles from before.

Alice just rolled her eyes. "Oh _come on, _Lily, everyone else is noticing it but you!" She started stomping down the hallway again. I had to run to catch up to her.

"What are you talking about?" I could feel a strange panicky feeling starting to rise in my throat, making my voice higher.

Alice halted again. It seemed like she was gathering her thoughts before she spoke. "You and that 'childish' boy have been spending quite a lot of time together." She said slowly, trying to gauge my reaction.

I spluttered being much less collected in gathering my thoughts than Alice had been. "Detention does not count as spending time together!" I practically shouted, making some heads turn. Alice sighed dejectedly.

"See! This is why I told Marlene that we should stay out of it!" She started walking away again, but I clung on to her sleeve.

"No! No you are explaining this to me right now!"

"It's just like I said! You guys are spending a lot of time together! It's just kind of…"

"Just kind of what? Alice, these things are just happening okay? It's not like I'm trying to spend time with…" My voice dwindled in my throat, not allowing anymore words to come. The panicky feeling changed into a shocked stab.

Here I was making excuses again.

I barely heard Alice when she spoke again. "Oh, these things just happen do they? What about this morning?" When she said that though, I was jarred out of my thoughts.

"What about this morning?" I repeated her. I didn't need to ask though. I knew very well to what she was referring to, and my cheeks were still tinged pink from it.

_I collapsed on the couch in the now vey empty common room and didn't even try to hide the whine in my voice. "I still have homework! I'm too tired though." _

_I may have been playing it up a little bit when I fell against the arm of the couch, kicking my school bag in the process, but I really was too tired. Cleaning that bathroom had made me aware of muscles I didn't even know I had._

_I heard James chuckle. Hell, I _felt_ him chuckle. I hadn't even noticed that he'd sat down next to me. "Would you like me to hum for you?" He quirked an eyebrow at me and his face took on a suggestive shadow in the glowing embers of the fire._

_Trying to shake away the shivers that gave me, I shoved him as I sat back upright, pulling out my Potions book. _

_James leaned back in the couch, his body so close to mine it should have been uncomfortable. He started humming a little bit, but I nudged him in the ribs none too softly with my elbow. _

_The fire cracked into the silence that had yet again fallen over us. Ink dripped onto my parchment as I hesitated a moment. "I really am sorry." I whispered, averting my eyes. James didn't answer._

_Then a light weight fell onto my shoulder, and I jolted at the feel of it. I almost got whiplash from how fast I turned my head to find a bush of black hair on my shoulder. _

_Letting out a breath that I hadn't been aware of gasping in, I leaned my head down, trying not to move my shoulder. James was lightly breathing, fast asleep. _

_A smile crept onto my mouth at the sight of him. This seemed to be happening a lot, but…_

_But I wasn't exactly minding it. _

_Slowly, as to not wake him up, I slid his glasses off of his nose and laid them and my again unfinished homework on the table in front of the couch. This boy was making me a slacker. _

_That thought did not seem to bother me though as I snuggled deeper into the couch, letting my head fall to rest on top of James'._

Then this morning, we'd been found out. I'd woken up that morning lying down on the couch, one of James' arms wrapped lazily around my waist. My eyes had still been blurry from sleeping, but after rubbing them, a group of third years were standing in the corner, tittering about us.

I jolted up, waking James, and my face burned, looking like really bad sun burn.

"Look Lily," Alice brought me out of my thoughts again. "I'm not accusing you of anything. All I'm trying to say is you two are kind of noticeable. And it's not just the spending time together thing. You guys are acting differently. In a good way." She patted my shoulder carefully. "I have to go meet Frank now, alright?" She turned away, walking slowly towards the huge doorway.

I nodded, not really even paying attention to what she said. I could feel her looking back at me once in awhile as she exited, but my eyes were fixed on the opposite wall.

Everything that had happened during the past few weeks finally came together in my head. It was a strange feeling. It wasn't the punch in the gut feeling, or the slap in the face. It was like a bird that lands on your shoulder, and sings softly in your ear. Singing softly so only you can hear, but loud enough so you understand.

Dazed, I leaned back against the wall as other students kept passing me, laughing with their arms around each other. I felt so separated from all of it.

_But I wasn't exactly minding it._

My thoughts were reeling, and scenes from the past few weeks kept popping up in my vision. When he gave me chocolate. His humming that night. His expression when he was trying to convince me to stay. How close we had gotten down in the kitchens…

There was more than just that though. Thoughts of a younger James were coming back to me. A thirteen year old James asking me to Hogsmeade. A second year version laughing with his friends.

My knees began to tremble beneath me, threatening to give out. I could feel my hands clutching at my arms, but I didn't remember them ever moving.

Then from what felt like far away, I heard "Lily?"

My gaze was torn away from the wall across from me and it found James standing there, still in his overalls. He was giving me a lopsided smile, but his eyes looked worried. He walked up to me slowly, in an almost cautious manner. "What are you doing inside on this fine Hogsmeade day?"

I made my fingers detach themselves from my arms and tried to look natural. My eyes kept following him as he came nearer. "Er, I was going. Yes. I was going to…I was going-" I indicated the large doorway that was open to Hogsmeade, making up for my lack of words at the moment.

James took the strand of wheat out of his mouth and licked his lips. He looked from the doorway to me. Then he nodded, an amused smile forming on his mouth as he started towards where I'd indicated.

He turned back halfway, eyebrows raised. His smile was making me very suspicious. "Coming?"

He looked so childish in his overalls and the wheat sticking out of his lips, but his face was nothing but juvenile anymore.

I looked back at the wall, for some reason it seemed to hold something above my head now. It was the only thing that had witnessed my thoughts.

"Yeah." I whispered, turning to smile at him.

Alice was right. I had been spending an awful lot of time with him.

But I wasn't exactly minding it.


	13. Climbing Trees

Sirius was convinced beyond reason that he could run faster than James.

That is how we all ended up down here on the grounds, challenging each other.

We'd all been down in the common room, along with many other Gryffindors. I'd been trying to read, but all of the laughing kept interrupting me as they kept stealing pieces of Remus' chocolate. Marlene and Sirius were arguing as usual, and that's when the subject came up.

"I would just chase you then!" Sirius said triumphantly about whatever they'd been talking about before, as I'd been trying to tune it out.

Marly scoffed, "I could outrun you." Sirius started violently and looked at her incredulously.

"You could not! You must be mistaking me with Petes over there!" Peter looked up and frowned at Sirius.

Marly being Marly, just ignored his ranting and turned to talk to me, even as I stubbornly stayed looking at the words on my page, even if I wasn't reading them. Sirius looked as if his pride had just gone down the drain. He frantically looked around for support. "James! Jamey Jay James! I can run faster than her correct?"

James glanced up lazily, one arm fighting off Remus as he tried to get a bite of chocolate off, his jaws about to close around James' wrist. I finally let my eyes leave the page to see his reaction. He smiled slowly. "Paddy, anyone can run faster than you."

He said it with humor and mischief, obviously trying to push Sirius' buttons. Well, to put it simply it worked, just not in the joking way that James wanted it to. Sirius face went into shock and he jumped up, his finger pointed in James' direction. "Sure, anyone but _you_!"

Remus slid his now melted chocolate bar out of James' grip and held a secret smile to himself.

Despite his joke being foiled, James held the challenge in his eyes. "Want to put that to the test Pads?"

And that is how we ended up next to the Black Lake, both of them kicking their feet like bulls about to charge the red cape. Alice and Frank were still tagging along behind us, and Remus was still enjoying his leftover chocolate.

Marly yelled "GO!" And the two of them sprinted off before I could even look up.

And like I said, that's how the challenges started. After James beat Sirius on the way back, Sirius had to reclaim his honor, and challenged Remus to an arm wrestle, which Remus won. Sirius was really feeling down on his luck, and even challenged Frank to an eating contest, which Frank declined. However, Peter was very happy to oblige.

The two of them ran off toward the Great Hall, leaving the rest of us under the largest tree next to the lake, a great oak. I was about to pull my book back out when James said out of nowhere, "You ever climbed a tree Evans?" Hearing him use my last name again set a pit in my stomach, and irrational worries popped into my head. _Is that supposed to mean something?_

I looked up at him, the sun shining behind him. It was like from a fairy tale. It made his face and smile glow, and his glasses gleamed, making his eyes seem brighter than usual. His hair seemed to shine and reflect the light.

Again, I wasn't exactly minding that I was noticing this.

"Of course I've climbed a tree." I said with a hint of dismissal, really hoping to get back to reading. James looked over at me with that silly Marauder classic smile. He moseyed on over so he was standing directly in front of me, his feet kicking lightly at mine.

"Prove it." He whispered, almost inaudibly. His eyes revealed that he was asking a little more that just to climb a tree. He had some ulterior motives there.

I'm not exactly sure what pushed me to do so; I didn't feel any need to prove myself to him. But I set my book down in the grass and stood up, meeting James evenly, although I had to look up at him from my height. "Fine," I almost sniffed at him, and led the way over to the opposite side of the oak.

Turning around, I almost choked when I saw James taking off his robe. He gave me a funny look, that bloody eyebrow of his sliding up his forehead. "Did you expect me to climb a tree with something that can get caught?" His ever present smirk grew more pronounced on his lips.

I took my cloak off as well, my hands a bit shaky for some reason, and we both walked a little closer to the tree. He motioned for me to go first, making a bowing motion. I rolled my eyes and went to reach for the closest branch, but then I froze. I whipped around quickly, and I'm pretty sure that my hair whipped his face, because he was kind of spitting his tongue out when I looked at him.

James was closer than I thought he had been, and he looked down at me with a surprised look. I moved a little closer, and I pressed a demeaning finger into his chest. "If I catch you looking up my skirt Potter, I swear I will kick you out of the tree. And I will not be the least bit sad if you die." I don't know if he thought I wasn't serious, or if he just couldn't help it, but he laughed quietly.

He gave me a small salute, still trying to muffle his laughter. "Aye aye, my lady! Wasn't even on my mind." He took on a very innocent, boyish look.

"Sure it wasn't." I muttered disbelievingly as I turned again to grab the branch.

I could feel him directly beneath me the whole time, sometimes his breath whispering softly over my calf, and I could feel my knuckles turn white every time, clutching at the branches. Keeping a close eye as to that he kept his promise I would occasionally glance down at him. It was like he was trying extremely hard not to sneak a peek, for his eyes were conspicuously looking everywhere but right in front of him.

The branches were starting to get thinner as we got higher, and the wind was starting to get faster, biting our skin. I could hear my mother's voice warning me not to go any further if I wanted to ever climb a tree again from when I was young.

"Do you want to turn back?" I looked down, sending a question to the boy beneath me, but he just grinned up at me. James didn't have to say a thing. I knew it was dangerous. A branch could snap, and my life would be flashing before my eyes before I'd even had a chance to live. But somehow just by a simple show of teeth, James could coerce me into going higher. Into taking that risk.

We were nearly to the top, my nerves starting to scream at me to go back down quickly. My nerves jumped, making me almost lose my balance when I felt James come up directly behind me, his feet on the same branches as me. The branches swayed threateningly beneath us.

Nothing was said as we just looked out together over the grounds. There were tiny crowds of students that spotted the grass, and we could see Sirius and Peter exiting the school again, both holding their stomachs in pain. The sun was just beginning its descent beneath the ground, and I could practically feel it burning my skin. I could just guess where some new freckles would show up on my face.

Very softly, so I barely felt it, James' fingers floated over my hands on the branch. The shadows from the leaves danced over our hands when I looked down. He pressed a little closer into my back. Again, I didn't mind the feeling that spread all the way to the tips of my fingers from these brushes of skin. Merlin, he was barely touching me.

I let my eyes close slowly. The smells of the grounds were so strong up here. Scents must be like heat, and they rise up. I could smell all of the flowers that rested at the edge of the Forbidden Forest and the fresh smell of the lake as well. Laughter and chattering could be heard from all over, whether from the students or the leaves blowing in the wind.

"Ready to head back down?" James lips brushed my ear as he whispered this, whether he meant them to or not, and it sent shivers down my spine, on top of the previous ones. I nodded, not trusting myself to speak. Bloody hell, a hiccup might have come out for all I knew at the moment.

The process was slow, but after awhile, the green grass was comfortable closer again, even if we were still high up. I watched James as he surprisingly jumped down to the ground with grace, as if he was loping down the branches like they were ordinary ground. He looked back up at me, his eyes watching my every move. His eyes held almost a protective gleam in them. It almost felt like he was trying to keep his gentlemanly arms down from helping me out of the tree.

I tried to remember the path he'd taken, and went down the same branches. See, I'd always been good at climbing trees. However, I'd never been very good at climbing _down_.

The ground was right there, only a few branches left. My left foot felt down for the branch, and I released my grip as I felt the solid wood beneath my foot.

_Snap!_

My stomach jumped up, and my throat closed shut, cutting off the scream that had formed as I felt myself tumble backwards. I couldn't hear anything. The blue sky seemed to get just a little brighter as it got further away, and then my head slammed against the ground.

I couldn't feel anything else. Only the throbbing pain that took over at the back of my head. It wasn't until afterwards that the humiliation started prodding at me. My hand wouldn't move from my side, even as I tried. Then fear went through me. _What if it's cracked?_

"Lily!" The sound that wrenched from his throat sent even more pain through me. Finally, something responded when my eyes fluttered. He was right there. His voice had sounded so far away, but he was so close, holding me close to him. His usually bright eyes were stormy now, concern flooding them. His brow was furrowed so deep. I didn't want his forehead to have those wrinkles, and I tried to smooth them out, but my hand was still not responding.

He shouted again, but it was muffled. I had to force my ears to open up, but my mind wouldn't let two things work at once. "Lily! No, don't close your eyes!" James' hand came to hold the back of my head up, but I couldn't bring myself to look into those worry filled eyes again. "Lily, _come on!_ Show me you're ok! Give me a sign Lily, please." James yelled in my ears desperately.

My eyes decided to pick then to respond again. They opened barely. He was _so_ close. "Any sign…" he whispered, his head falling even closer to mine. It took all of my strength, but I lunged my head forward. It seemed so otherworldly. My head was buzzing, whether it was from hitting it so hard, or from my lips meeting his.

I could feel his shock against me, the hand cradling my head weaving its fingers through my hair tightly. It was so fast. A heavy breath escaped me, and I couldn't keep my head up anymore. I feel back against James, my head pounding worse than before. Clouds seemed to be fogging up my mind, and sounds became quieter and quieter, and my body felt lighter and lighter.

Before I felt my consciousness slip away completely, I heard James say, from so far away, "You are definitely not ok."


	14. Taking Care of Someone When Sick

I remember seeing a blur of the Infirmary ceiling, but then it disappeared again.

I remember hearing different voices surrounding me, hurting my head even more, with a lower one calmer than the others, staying near my ear at all times.

I remember the revolting taste of some goo sliding down my throat, but after some time, the pain eased down, and I drifted off again.

When my eyes finally fluttered open again, I could barely move a single muscle in my aching body. It felt like all of my joints were creaky door hinges, and it made me wince every time I moved them, just imagining them squeaking. I let out a moan when I tried to lift my head, but then my eyes caught on the canopy above me. It was not the canopy above my bed, but it definitely was familiar.

"James?" Immediately after croaking that out, I started coughing violently. A frog must have decided that my throat would be a good place to make his home while I was sleeping.

The boys' dorm was deserted. I moved to crawl out of the bed, but my muscles screamed at me that that wasn't a good idea. I let myself drop back down on the mattress, it sucking me in like an old friend. _Welcome back,_ it seemed to whisper. I wanted to roll my eyes, but then again, I felt some small part of me hope that it might be whispering that again. I wasn't sure with what had happened yesterday. I felt my skin heat up at the memory.

The door creaked open, and I glanced over just in time to see the disheveled black hair enter the room, steam surrounding him. Literally. James was holding a large pot that was sending steam all up around his face and fogging up his glasses. It was a wonder he could even see where he was going. He set it down on the bedside table, creating an ambrosial aroma all around the vicinity. I let out a content sigh.

Chicken Noodle Soup. I had to resist the urge to lick my lips.

"It's good to see you awake finally." He smiled at me, as he scooped up two bowls of the soup. I returned his smile as he handed one of the bowls to me, eager to get closer to the smell and inhale it completely. I could hear him laughing at me, but I didn't care. It was perfect.

Shyly, I offered a "Thank you," which he just nodded at, and we both sipped our soup, laughing lightly as the obnoxious noises of slurping filled the room.

"Why am I here?" I said, trying to keep my voice as quiet as I could, a failed attempt at hiding my pet frog in my throat.

He got a playful look at first. "Because we actually have permission to skip class this time." He winked at me from behind his glasses. I frowned at him.

"Be serious. Why aren't I in the infirmary?"

James set his bowl down, and started playing with a string on the bed curtains. His voice came out very playful, but his eyes gave him away. They were watching every move I made intently, a question ever present in the coffee eyes of his. "The infirmary beds are extremely uncomfortable. Trust me, I know from experience. And I believe you said my bed was the most comfortable you had ever slept on." One side of his mouth quirked up.

I nodded, looking into my soup, but then I started. I whirled on him so fast my soup almost spilled. "How did you know that I said that?" I demanded. James just smiled secretively. I was never going to get that out of him.

Then he looked at the little string between his fingers. "And I can't keep an eye on you in the infirmary. I feel responsible for what happened." He mumbled. It was so strange for me to see him so unsure of himself.

"James. You are not responsible for my clumsiness," I wish that I could touch his arm or some other reassuring act, but my arms were refusing to move. "If anything, blame the tree." It seemed to lighten his mood a little bit, even though he was till watching me with that question hanging over my head always.

I must have had three bowls of soup. Afterwards, James had slipped out to get rid of our dishes and I shimmied back deep into the sheets. I swear the bed held a triumphant air. Maybe James _had_ put a spell on it.

When he entered the doorway again, the first thing out of his lips was "How are you feeling now?" His voice was so soft.

I decided to tell him the truth, but give it too him lightly. In all honesty, my body was just one big mess, and everything felt bruised from my exciting fall.

"My throat aches." I rasped out from under the tightly tucked covers. That frog was too damn big to fit in my throat.

James looked over at me from across his dorm. "What else do you want me to do Lilyflower?" He lifted his arms lightly, slowly making his way over, sitting next to me on the bed. "I bloody cooked for you! Soup even! Chicken noodle soup!"

My laughing was pathetic as it scraped out of my throat.

He tried to hide his smile, but at the same time looked as if he was about to roll his eyes at me. "Would you like me to kiss it and make it better?" He asked, referring to my earlier complaint in a joking manner, as he stood up again.

Thoughts from the day before made me freeze up. Just remembering his face so close to mine, and what my actions had led to. "Yeah, I do actually." I slapped my hand over my mouth. That was meant to forever stay between thought and tongue and never leave!

"Yeah you do actually what?" He asked, turning back at me. He was completely ignorant of what had just naughtily escaped my thoughts; the crooked eyebrow gave that away.

Slowly, so slowly it felt like the whole world had been put under a slowing hex, I forced my hand to lower from my mouth. I took a deep breath, feeling myself already turning red from something that wasn't even said yet. "Yes, I do actually…want you to kiss it and make it better." My voice petered out by the end, the last half of barely being audible.

There was not doubt that James hadn't heard it though. He got this strange look, like the one he'd given me that day in the hallway, in his silly overalls. His eyebrows creased into a confused frown.

I had to stop myself from burying my head underneath the sheets of his bed and never coming out.

He wasn't looking at me, his hazel eyes staring out the window on the other side of his bed. Out at the Oak tree by the lake. Then almost without seeming to move, those eyes connected with mine. He didn't say a word, but cautiously worked his way over to me.

Air was not coming of leaving my throat anymore as he came to the side of his bed. He didn't say a word, but lowered his head down to my neck, and lightly brushed his lips over my throat. My eyes closed as wind finally left my throat. He let his mouth lightly drag over the skin of my jaw, towards my ear.

"Does anything else hurt then?" His voice had become husky and low. It clouded up all of my senses.

"My head hurts." I breathed out. He travelled up from my ear and pressed a kiss to my forehead, near my hairline. "And my nose." A dainty little peck on the very tip of my nose. His breath smelled like chocolate. "My pinky." I said with a small smile, holding up my left hand, pinky sticking out like I was holding a cup of tea. I felt him chuckle a bit, before he kissed that too.

"And…" This is it. "And my lips are sore too." I added so quietly, I wasn't even sure he could even hear it. That is, until I felt the pressure on my lips. I let out a breath and let my arms slide up and around his neck. He rested his hands on both side of the mattress on either side of me, and leaned it closer.

This one was much better than kissing him while I was half unconscious.

It was not what I thought it would be. It wasn't as the romance novels put it, where it gets out of hand into lustful claws right away. I could just feel him everywhere. His smell filled my nostrils; he smelled like a wood. Trees surrounding me, and the leaves all giving off different scents. I could feel him, his forehead pressing right against mine as our lips melted together. And finally, I could taste him. It is impossible to describe.

It felt like air was filling my veins instead of blood, and sending shivers all the way down to my toes and making me lift into the air.

It ended slowly, neither of us wanting to end it. The hazel eyes were burning into me when my eyes opened. It sent the shivers going wild.

I sent a smile his way, not sure of what to say after something like that. After a long moment, James returned it, his eyes finally showing the same emotion as his mouth did.

He moved to get up, but I gently tugged him down close to me, trying to maneuver the sheets around him. He didn't put up much of a fight. James wound his arms around my back and pulled me close.

We didn't drift off. We didn't speak. We didn't have to.

Though I did feel his grin aimed up at the ceiling, as I let one of my own form on my face.


	15. Things Too Good To Be True

It was not really clear to me how it had happened, but the next time I woke up, James was gone, and the bright ceiling of the Infirmary was above me.

"Ah, you're finally awake!" Madame Pomfrey shuffled over to me from the Ravenclaw Seeker that had gotten a broken leg in the last match.

"How does your head feel?" I slid up into a sitting position, my muscles still quaking. The nurse prodded the back of my head and I hissed loudly. "Yes, that is quite the bruise you have back there. One moment," She bustled to the cabinet quickly, returning with a purple liquid. It wasn't as nasty as it looked.

I tried to get her to stop for a second, but the woman was forever on the move. "Er, Madame? When did I get in here?" I asked her, even as she flurried past to a first year whose potion had exploded in his face.

She seemed to think for a moment as she spooned a clear liquid that was too heavy and gloppy to be water down his throat. "I believe Mr. Potter brought you here at around eleven." I didn't really know how to respond to that, so I just nodded as I leaned back into the bed. James was right. The beds were extremely uncomfortable.

Madame Pomfrey zipped back to my bedside with my folded uniform and school bag that she had seemed to materialize out of nowhere. "The potion should have kicked in fully in about twenty minutes. You are well enough to go to class, so why don't you get dressed."

It was a shaky event that took almost about twenty minutes, but I succeeded in getting my uniform on.

"You are going to have to keep coming back until that bruise is fully gone, some side effects could occur." She reported as she wrote me a pass to Potions.

The hallways were completely empty, with the exception of house ghosts going back and forth through the walls. My legs refused to run, so I had to dawdle down to the dungeons.

Every eye turned to me when I came through the door. "Ah, Miss Evans! So good of you to join us!" Professor Slughorn just about gushed, his face lighting up. I smiled warily at him, and shyly went to my seat. I had no problem with these people, but it is quite disconcerting to have so many eyes on you. At least every pair of eyes but the hazel ones behind glass in the corner. It made me frown slightly as I took my seat next to Alice.

Slughorn kept on with his lecture. I tried to be sneaky while getting out my parchment and try to sneak a look at James, but he kept his eyes stubbornly facing the front of the classroom.

My mind was sent reeling. I knew it was sending Slughorn into a fit of bafflement, because it was the first time that I was not at full attention of one of his classes.

I felt like one of those classic panicky school girls. Why was he averting his eyes? Why had he taken me to the infirmary? Alice tried to catch my attention, but I stared at my unmoving quill. What had changed after I fell asleep? What changed his mind so suddenly?

Every memory of him asking me out to Hogsmeade in the past flooded my memory. What had changed?

When class was dismissed, I bolted from my seat, not even caring to pack my blank parchment. I pushed through other students and stepped on more than a few feet. "James!" I shouted. I was afraid that he wouldn't stop, but he turned back at the sound of my shout.

People filtered out past us, including Slughorn who gave us an odd look as he passed. The door closed behind him, and James gave me an expectant look. I was about to cut right to the chase when he asked "How are you?"

A hand went automatically to the tender spot on my head. "Fine," I said slowly, "though a little confused at waking up in the infirmary." I watched him carefully, and his eyes got a funny look, like yesterday. Before we'd…

"Well you were looking a little pale." I looked right up at him, but he was now looking at the front of the room again. There was no conviction in his voice. I didn't believe one word of that.

The room fell silent for a minute. The bell for the next class rang, and running footsteps could be heard coming from the Slytherin area of the dungeons. He didn't make a move to leave.

"James, about yesterday," I started, wanting to just plow through the "awkward phase" that I'd just heard about.

"I'm sorry." It was barely audible. He was still looking determinedly towards the chalkboard giving me a profile of his face. His jaw was clenched so tightly, I could see the muscle working in his cheek.

"Sorry? For what?" Incredulity was very prominent in my voice. "You didn't want to kiss me?" And the cat was out of the bag. He turned his head to face me, but his eyes didn't meet mine. He'd been doing this too much. I wanted to see them. Slowly, I moved closer to him, ducking my head to meet his gaze. The stubborn git closed his eyes.

"No. _I'm_ not sorry…" He sounded like he was struggling with something. "But you will be." He finally opened his eyes. His looked so deep as he met my gaze. My stomach felt as if it had become flat.

"What makes you think that?" I had _wanted _him to kiss me! I practically made him! I wanted to slap him silly, and make him see clearly. Doubt filled his eyes. It was too good to be true, all of this was, but he was choosing not to believe it.

He sighed, and I swear his hand moved to touch my shoulder, but it fell back to his side. "You hit your head. You weren't thinking straight yesterday." He had a disappointed look on his face.

I couldn't believe it. He was attributing me kissing him to an injury? I tried to make noise come out of my throat, but I couldn't come up with anything to say to that. I probably looked like a fish with my mouth opening and closing silently.

The movement was made before I even made the decision, and my lips were brushing against his. My hand had slid to the back of his neck to keep him close, yet he didn't seem to be fighting me. His mouth responded almost immediately. He betrayed the words he had just mumbled and perplexed me to no end.

He pulled his lips away from mine lightly, but he stayed close to me. "See? I don't feel sorry." My fingers seemed to squeeze, trying to make him believe me. His eyes stayed closed, but his hand slid up my side, making me shiver. It traveled up to the back of my head, where he held the back of my head so gently.

My eyes tightened, waiting for the pain from the tender spot, but he was barely touching it. "There is still a bruise there. You're still injured." He said it seriously, but when his eyes opened again, they held hope in them.

I frowned at him and tugged him closer again, smashing my lips to his harder than last time. "Then I'm just going to keep doing this until you believe me." And I meant it.

He pulled me so close that my body was pressed to every edge of his, and he still held my head like it was the most fragile, precious thing in the world. "Well," finally, his smirk made an appearance, sending a feeling of more comfortable familiarity through me. "I guess I will be enjoying your impairment."

-x-

Madame Pomfrey had called for me in the morning, and I had to go drink another dose of the purple goo. The medicine gave me a sort of funny feeling on my way down to the Great Hall, but once I smelled syrup coming from the entry way, the nausea was gone.

Everybody was as loud as usual however I could easily pick out the ones I'd been searching for. They were the loudest ones. I sauntered over, sending a wave to Alice as I passed her. I stopped right behind him, and Sirius had to cough rather conspicuously before he looked up at me.

"Still impaired?" James asked, one of his eyebrows quirking up.

"Yup," I played along, acting casual. Until I leaned down and kissed his cheek, a little too close to his soft lips and lingering a little longer than what was acceptable in public. I heard Sirius spitting out his pancake, most likely all over Peter.

Without even looking back at him, I just turned on my heel and made my way over to where Alice and Marlene were sitting. Alice looked as if she had just spontaneously combusted inside, and Marly was trying her very best not to burst out laughing.

-x-

Soon enough, we'd created a sort of routine. I would wake up and get ready much earlier than the other girls in my dorm and head down to the common room. James was always waiting for me, leaning against the arm of the couch, his hair as disheveled as ever. We would walk along towards the infirmary, making comfortable small talk, him cracking jokes, but the tension between us was almost tangible. I wanted to just grab his ear and force him to believe what I had said.

The nurse would check my head, and assure that the bruise was healing well. James would stand politely by, staring at me as I would gulp down the medicine. I swear I was becoming immune to the taste.

Then sometime in between breakfast down in the Great Hall and drugging medicine in the infirmary, I would stop him in the middle of the hallway, pulling him down to me. He never fought me, just let it happen. He would smile as I would reassure him that I would keep doing it everyday, but I could always catch that doubt in his eyes.

I wanted to be with him. It scared me how much I did. And it frustrated me to no end that he picked this point in time to not believe in me.

"I am really confused." Alice muttered to herself as we left Transfiguration one day. _Me too, _I wanted to say.

"How can you be confused? The year is almost over; even McGonagall is starting to ease on lectures!" That was a good thing for me, since I had started to daydream in class more and more, staring outside as the grounds prepared for the summer months, where no students would be roaming the green hills.

"I'm not talking about Transfiguration! I'm talking about you and James! How did all of this suddenly happen?" She gained a few strange looks from some third years from her outburst.

I had to prevent myself from slamming my head into the wall. "Al, I've already explained it to you a million times!"

She kept mumbling to herself about how I "never told her anything anymore" all the way back to the common room, but once Frank greeted her from his spot on the couch, she was suddenly good ole bubbly Alice again. I rolled my eyes at my friend.

I couldn't find James anywhere among the heads of Gryffindors, or any Marauders for that matter.

Trying to ignore the twinge of disappointment in my stomach, I settled into the chair nearest the fire to finish the very little homework we had been given. The teachers were always lenient at the end of the year.

Some second years behind me kept distracting me with their annoying whispers. They were gossiping about the shack near Hogsmeade. I clenched my teeth. The "Shrieking Shack" had become quite the popular rumor lately. Everyone whispered that it was haunted, and that strange noises could be heard from it on the full moon. Because tonight happened to be a full moon, the paranoia was taking over the younger students. Older students either didn't care anymore, or the just pretended not to be afraid of it.

After one of the girls let out a blood curdling scream from a boy jolting her shoulders in the middle of their whispers, I gave up. I tried to make a show to them that they had annoyed me as I packed up all of my stuff and huffed off towards the girl's dormitory.

-x-

The next morning threw me off. I was hastily fixing my hair as I dashed down the steps, but the common room was completely empty. No James Potter in sight.

I felt myself frown, but I tried to shake it off.

Madame Pomfrey was especially twitchy this morning. Apparently Lucius Malfoy had been complaining of his aching head all night, and the poor first year from before had developed nasty boils all over from his exploded potion.

She looked frazzled, but still sounded completely calm as she prodded at my head. I didn't even wince. My head didn't feel numb. "Well, that's some good news this morning!" The poor nurse looked awfully relieved. "The bruise on your head is gone." My heart leapt up, almost out of my mouth.

She must have seen that on my face though. "Now don't get too excited. I still have to examine for inner damage. Just stay put." She pulled her apron tighter as the first year started groaning in pain.

If the bruise was gone, then I was close to the point of being considered completely healthy again. Where was James now? This is the time when he needed to be here!

Madame Pomfrey came back with her wand, and said a rather long spell that I didn't even bother catching. My mind was buzzing a mile a minute. I started chanting to myself; _please be healed, please be healed, please be healed!_

"Alright Miss Evans! It looks like you will no longer be in my charge anymore." The woman smiled kindly at me, and I could have hugged her, except for the fear I would break the frail nurse.

I was practically running down to the Great Hall, or as much as my school books would let me. My excitement was clouding up everything, I'm pretty sure that I bulldozed a fourth year over. Except that there was not raven haired head to be found at the long Gryffindor table.

I barely even stopped a minute when I could see no sign of him coming in. I dashed out again, towards History of Magic, my first class. It was a risky chance, but at least there was a small one.

My breath was very heavy and practically ripping through my lungs when I opened the classroom door, but all air stopped flowing when I saw him. He was practically collapsed onto his chair, his hand frozen midway through the threads of his hair.

Time seemed to slow down drastically as I moved towards him. I went around, directly in front of him. His eyes were closed behind his glasses and there were deep bags underneath them. Had he slept at all? I kneeled at the desk, not really wanting to disturb him.

"What's the verdict today?"

His whisper startled me, cutting right through the silence of the room. I thought he'd been asleep! Those chocolate eyes drifted open lazily and stared directly at me. It was a good thing I was kneeling, for I felt them melt at his intense gaze.

"Well, I'm not impaired anymore." At first, his expression didn't move, just staying completely indifferent to the last statement. He blinked. Then his jaw slacked, and he was standing up suddenly.

I stood up shakily to meet him, and moved around the desk. His brows knit together, and his lips opened to say something, but I didn't let him. It was time for that doubt in him to leave. I lunged forward, and crashed my lips to his.

This one was even better than all the previous ones. His hands were moving all around my back, sliding in and out of my hair. I could barely take it all in, and just clung to him, my toes barely touching the ground anymore.

We were breathing rather heavily as Professor Binns floated through the wall, but I didn't remove my arms from around his neck. He didn't look like he'd be the first to move either.

"So do you believe me now?" I asked, feeling apprehension build at the back of my neck. It was like he had felt it too, as his hand slid from my back to hold the back of my neck gently.

His smile was blinding, and contagious. He finally looked like the old James Potter that had seemed to have gone dormant for awhile.

"Oh yeah love, I believe you." He whispered huskily, before closing his lips over mine again.


	16. Crickets and Frogs

It was two weeks till the end of the term. That meant two things for me: I needed to start all of my class reviews, and I needed to lose my quilt.

Even with all of the cooling charms covering the room, it was still too hot in our dormitory to sleep. Marly complained about the windows being open at night, so soon those were closed at night too. I would wake up with all of my covers thrown on the stone floor, and still be too hot.

There was no fire in the gigantic fireplace anymore, but people still shied away from it as they walked in.

I tried to focus on my Potions study guide, but none of it was processing through my brain.

"I feel like I'm in hell." Sirius moaned from his stretched out position on the stone floor.

Marly kicked him in the side, trying to get more room on the cold floor for herself. "Get used to it."

James chuckled slightly beside me at the exchange and ran a hand through his hair. His glasses were almost literally fogging up from the heat, and he had to keep taking them off and wiping them on his robe.

I set my study guide aside and leaned my head on his shoulder. "It's too hot for this." He complained, though I could detect the smile in his voice.

"Get used to it." I mimicked Marly, which earned me a not so nice glare from both of the said people on the floor.

Even as the sun sunk below the lake, the weather didn't shed one grace of mercy on the poor student body, decreasing in heat in only one degree. The twisting and turning of sheets could be heard throughout the whole dormitory as everyone tried to find a comfortable and cool position to fall asleep in.

I waited for all of the noises to fall silent, and for the breathing to become even before I dared move. Carefully and noiselessly unfolding myself from the sheets, I snuck past Alice's bed. As slowly as I could, I pulled the door away from its resting place, open only so it could fit me, or else the hinges would squeak.

The cool stone of the steps felt wonderful on my feet as I padded down them, all the way to the nice cold common room. No one would guess it really, because when the common room was filled with people, it was indeed the muggiest place in Gryffindor Tower. But after everyone went to bed, the room cooled down almost to the temperature of my ice box at home.

I allowed a content sigh to escape my lungs, almost disappointed that I couldn't see my breath in the cool air.

It wasn't only the cool air that I sought in coming down here, but the open windows. With Marly closing our windows, I couldn't hear my favorite sound. But down in the common room, with the windows wide open, it seemed like the frogs down by the Black Lake were right in the room with me.

"I guess it's too hot for you up there as well, huh?" A voice came from the floor. My eyes blinked open, and though they were not completely used to the dark yet, I knew that voice anywhere.

"Yeah," I whispered, shuffling over to him. My foot ran into his shoulder, and I let out a giggle as I sunk down with him on his makeshift nest of blankets. "I didn't know anybody else came down here." I whispered, my hand running down his arm, searching for his.

James met me halfway, our fingers entwining. "It isn't the first time I've done it. I usually come down when Peter's snores get to be too much." I could picture his scrunched up expression at that and laughed.

"You know you're no better. You snore too."

James nudged me with his elbow, even as his thumb started caressing the back of my hand. "I do not!" He whispered indignantly.

"Do too!"

"Do not!"

"Do too!"

James rolled over so he was above me. "Do not!" His breath fanned over my face, and I could smell the toothpaste he'd used.

I smiled up at his shining eyes that the dark was trying to hide from me. "You do. Not as bad as Peter's though. It's…you're snoring is cute." I revealed.

He moved off of me, back so we were lying side by side. "Cute?" He questioned with a smile in his voice. I only laughed, not giving him the satisfaction of explaining myself further.

A comfortable silence fell between us, filled only with the song of the crickets and the frogs. I could already feel my eyelids getting heavy from just listening to it.

"It's beautiful isn't it?" I said sleepily, finishing with a yawn as I snuggled up closer to him.

"What? The common room?" Being in love with him does not prevent my ability to roll my eyes at him.

"No! The frogs!" I indicated the window, even though he wouldn't be able to see it in the dark.

He stopped, listening intently to the sound floating in through the open window. I could feel his smile. It was like him, and almost seemed to give off heat when it appeared. "They are." He agreed in a rumbling voice against my head on his chest.

I don't know how long we just laid there like that, entwined together, listening.

"You know, they almost have rhythm." He commented. I couldn't help giggling like a little girl at his comment, but we were folded back into the song in a moment.

I wasn't sure why he decided to do it, but James hand had begun rubbing my back, and that mixed with the song was starting to let sleep overwhelm me.

A/N: A short chapter, but there are plenty more to come!


	17. Watching the Sunrise

"Lily, wake up!"An urgent whisper came in my ear, and I felt a hand shake my shoulder lightly. I scrunched my eyes tighter, and tried to bury myself deeper into the blankets. "Come on Lils…" Lips pressed right against my ear, and I felt my skin prickle where his breath fell.

I let my eyelids flutter open, and found the common room ceiling above me. That view was overtaken by a brown eyed boy, his eyes glittering as usual. "It's about time." He smirked at me, and let his fingers run through my hair.

This all felt so surreal, waking up and seeing James and having these feelings bubble up at the sight of him. I felt a sleepy smile form on my lips, but I dared not open them. Morning breath is the worst curse to be put on man kind.

"Alright, I'm up, now what's so important?" I asked, trying not to let a whiff of breath escape. James kissed my hand lightly. He stood up, bring my hand with him. I groaned as I was pulled up with him. Not bothering to balance on my feet, I leaned into his chest.

"Oh, we're going to be like _that_ this morning, are we?"He chuckled softly, and pulled me closer. I let a cheeky smile show up at him, and he laughed a little louder. "Come on." He whispered. His eyes held an excitement that confused me, but he pushed me along.

Now I was really starting to regret not putting stockings on. The stone floor was freezing on my toes, making me shiver. In the Entrance Hall, James pushed open the giant doors.

The land seemed to glow. A light fog was still settled over the grass. The sky was lit up; looking almost pink, but the sun had not shown its yawning face yet. The air smelled fresh and new, welcoming the new day. The only thing I could do was let out a sigh of amazement.

"I know." James whispered. He pulled me forward down the path. The air held a chill to it, as if the night was still trying to hold on to keep the dreaded heat away. James made a beeline for the Black Lake, but once my toes reached the grass, the dew clung to my feet.

I let out a shriek. The grass was cold! James looked back, a worried frown creasing his brow. I leapt back onto the path and looked down at my white toes. I must've looked silly, for James let out another laugh at me.

He sauntered lightly over to me, the laugh still hanging in his eyes, threatening to explode out of him again. I tried to glare at him, but my teeth were chattering too hard. Though I was able to form some hint of one when I saw that he had his slippers on. Even if they did have some holes in them, it was still more than I had on my poor feet.

We looked at each other for a moment, and a streak of light hit the castle wall. James looked almost panicked at the sight of it. "Lily, come on!" He urged, reaching out for me.

"No way! I'm not risking my toes just to run around like a maniac!" I know I sounded unreasonable, but waking up this early in the morning and having cold toes was not exactly what I'd wanted to do this morning.

James sighed with a frustrated look. His hand went around my arm and he pulled me forward to the very edge of the pathway, my feet just brushing the dewy grass. He turned so his back was facing me, and he swung my arm closer. I was wary, but I pulled myself up on his back with his help.

"You really are desperate aren't you?" I breathed as his arms held my up under my knees. My arms folded their way around his chest, and he started walking down to the lake, carrying me like a little girl in a piggy back ride.

"I'm not going to let you miss this." He breathed back, tickling my leg slightly. I jumped, and it made him swerve a little.

When we got to the edge of the lake, I expected him to let me slide down, but he actually hoisted me up again. I didn't want him to have to keep holding my weight, but he seemed pretty adamant in keeping me on his back.

"James, I can stand now, really-"

"Look," Was all he said. I followed his gaze and saw the little golden sliver peaking above the lake. Even with that little bit of light, the lake began to shimmer in response. I let out a small gasp as it rose even further right before my eyes. Soon enough, about half of the sun was visible, and James and I actually had to start shielding our eyes from its bright shine that made everything glow. The sun made everything look new and beautiful. Even the Forbidden Forest looked calm, not a monster to be heard or seen. The grass seemed to glisten as well, with all of the little dew drops reflecting the bigger light.

It was beautiful. There wasn't any other word that would come to my mind.

I let my head fall on James' shoulder, and he glanced at me out of the corner of his eyes. His smile was even reflecting the sun. "See, I'm not desperate. Would you have wanted to miss this?"

I shook my head, but whispered "I do still think you're desperate, you're just trying to cover it up." He tickled me again, the git.

His arms sagged under my weight, and I tried to slide out of his grip, but he wasn't having it. "I don't want to be blamed for missing Lily Evans toes!" He shouted when I tried again, and I couldn't help the laughter that escaped me, just picturing McGonagall handing out detention slips for lost toes.

The huge radiating sun was completely visible now, hovering above the lake. It wasn't rising as fast now, almost like it was waiting politely, yet impatiently for us to leave. I pressed a soft kiss to James' cheek as he turned to bring us back to the castle.

"Thank you." I whispered. James just smiled.


	18. Knowing You'll See Someone Again

The whole school seemed to be scrambling.

"Have you seen my stockings? I swear I hung them on the fire last night!"

"Did anybody find my Potions book? I can't lose it _again_…"

"Where is Frank? I have his tie in here! Oh bugger, he's got mine…FRANK!" Alice stormed from the room, waving Frank's red and gold tie like a flag above her head.

I folded my skirt and set it lightly atop my pile of clothes in my trunk and stared at the contents of it. I'd rearranged everything multiple times, even though it was just going to get all muddled up during the train ride. I let out what seemed to be the thousandth sigh just that morning.

Final exams were finally over, yet for once, I wasn't joining in the exciting shenanigans that meant the end of another year at Hogwarts. There had been a party down in the common room just last night, the Marauders sneaking in Butterbeer, Fire Whiskey, and all sorts of treats from Hogsmeade. Sure, the party had been fun, but it was still an ending.

I'd never liked endings.

The endings of books always made me triumphant at finishing another one, but sad that it was over.

The end of the day, where you realize you hadn't done what you had planned.

The end of the school year. In fact, I was nearing the end of my whole school career at Hogwarts.

However, that was still not what was putting me into such a foul mood.

I tried to busy myself with fixing up the area around my bed, but I'd already done it multiple times that morning.

Marly's head poked in my vision. "Have you seen my stockings?" Silently, I walked over to the stove in the middle of the room and opened it up, pulling out her slightly singed stockings. Our stove had the strange habit of eating whatever we hung on it somehow. She smiled and it looked like she was about to hug her socks.

Another sigh came as I went back to my bed, but I felt her behind me. Her relieved look about her socks had suddenly become concerned. "Are you feeling alright?" She asked, plopping herself down on my bare mattress. I nodded, but when she glared at me, I knew that I wasn't going to be allowed to stay quiet.

"For once, I'm not all that excited to be going home." I collapsed onto the bed next to her, and she frowned.

"Well you wouldn't, you're crazy and like school!" I knew she was teasing to try and make me feel better, but it didn't quite work. The smile barely fixed itself on my face. It probably looked more like a grimace.

"It's not necessarily…_school_ that's upsetting me." My hands started wringing themselves in my lap. Marly nodded, encouraging me on. Another sigh. "Listen, I really don't want to sound desperate."

She rolled her eyes at me. "Just spit it out Lily."

"No, I really don't want to sound like one of those girls that's-"

"Lily, by the fact that you're saying that, you're not going to sound like 'one of those girls'."

After a pause, I finally let it out. "I'm upset to be going home…because I'm going to miss James." I felt the blush creep across my cheeks as I looked down at my hands. I was waiting for a laugh, but when I looked up, Marly was smiling at me.

"That's not desperate," she seemed to be chiding me. "Lily, you two just got together! It's not desperate that you want to be with him, it's natural! This is all new to you!" Hearing it from Marly made it much less desperate than I'd made it out to be in my head. I really needed to get used to the whole "being with someone" thing.

She gave a quick squeeze around my shoulders and scooped up her socks to finish her packing. What she had said made me feel better at the fact that I hadn't become desperate, but it didn't take away my apprehensiveness at leaving.

So many things had happened as of late. I could barely take all of it in. It felt like I was living in this never ending, beautiful dream. And if I made one wrong move, it would all be snatched away from me.

Professor McGonagall came to collect all of us, handing our heavy trunks over to a grumbling Filch and we were all shepherded down to the train station in a giant mob. The crowd seemed to buzz, with just about everyone avoiding the subject that it was time to leave, and talking about everything else that came to mind instead.

Alice and Frank held hands beside me, but didn't make eye contact throughout the whole walk. Frank lived almost across the country, and it would be hard for the two of them to meet up at all in the summer.

The Marauders were no where in sight. As much as I searched, I couldn't see the mop of black hair that I was looking for. My stomach twisted nastily, reminding me of my earlier worries that I quickly shooed away.

The hectic affair of boarding the train just made everything worse. I lost Alice and Marlene in the process and I was still searching for that certain boy. My movements were growing slower as my concentration shifted from walking to combing the crowd, people were bumping into me and pushing me out of their ways.

It was quite sudden to find the Hogwarts Express rumbling beneath my feet. The mob of students had herded me onto the train without my knowledge. I was really losing it.

The trolley came and went, and with every group of students, my eyes sifted through them, not finding a single thing. My hands stayed clenched in my lap and my back was locked upright.

I was speeding away back home before I was ready. It was going too fast. Had the ride seemed this fast before? And I hadn't even seen him today.

_You sound desperate._ The annoying voice chimed at the back of my head, but looking over at Alice and Frank, I knew the voice was wrong. Her head rested on his shoulder and he was whispering silly nothings in her ear, trying to clear her pixie face of the gloomy expression she wore. They were spending every last moment they could together.

The puff and hiss of the train brakes sounded, and panic filled my stomach. _Already?_ Looking out the window affirmed my dread, seeing the familiar sight of Platform 9 ¾ take shape.

Once the train came to a full stop, I practically shot out of the compartment, hearing my name called behind me. I pushed through people, mumbling apologies as I went along but not really meaning them. Hell, I was acting like it was going to be the last time I would ever see him. _Desperate…_ I shook my head roughly, really beginning to hate that word as it kept ringing around in my head.

There was three months until the next school year. I just wanted to see him.

Somebody must not have been a fan of all of my shoving, and they shoved back. Hard. I tumbled forward, and I bumped into somebody's back. The apology came up to my lips, but when the back turned around, there were smiling hazel eyes in front of me.

"Excuse me." His voice sent a tingle down my spine. We were blocking the small passageway of the train, earning ourselves some grumbling from students trying to hold their heavy trunks behind us.

All of my teeth were probably fighting to show with how big my smile felt. His grin matched mine. "Were you looking for someone?" He didn't even have to say so, but I knew he'd seen my little quest through the maze of people. A thought popped up that maybe he'd been avoiding me on purpose, just to experiment. Even so, I couldn't bring myself to be mad. It already felt like I hadn't seen him in three months. Is this what it felt like? Being in love? My mother had always said that she couldn't imagine what it would be like without my dad. She couldn't imagine it. I didn't want to imagine what it would be like without this boy. It was scary to admit, even more scary to think about.

Maybe it wasn't being desperate. Maybe it was that 'l' word.

"Possibly." I shrugged casually, not letting on to any of the thoughts running through my head.

He just laughed and pried my trunk from my fingers and tripped down the stair with both of ours, conjuring a giggle out of me.

"Thanks." I snorted.

All around us, students were running up to their parents and flinging their arms around them, even the seventeen year olds.

My parents would be waiting on the other side of the platform, and James made no move to leave, whether his parents were near or not.

His eyebrow quirked up and his smile wouldn't leave. He gave me that look, his eyes glittering like they always did. So much had changed in the past few weeks. Just about everything around me. Except for that look.

"I'll see you later love." Very briefly, his lips came over mine, earning a whistle from somewhere in the crowd. I got one more smile and a squeeze of the hand, and he was gone.

Maybe he disliked endings just as much as I did.

But it wasn't an ending. James wasn't ending. The next school year may be three months from now. Just knowing that I would see that look that hadn't changed since James was just a small, lanky eleven year old, made it all the better.


	19. Fulfillment

School had been out for only two weeks. In two weeks, I'd finished three books, cleaned my house multiple times, and Petunia and I were already sick of each other.

The summer wasn't even at its peak and the head was already stifling. I just sprawled on the floor of the back porch, the coldest spot I could find. Petunia had gone out earlier with her friends even though she was grounded and had left me to finish her chores as well as mine. I was already in enough hell when she was around, so if she wanted to break the rule, that was fine with me; just as long as I didn't have to deal with her.

The doorbell rang a few times, and the neighbor dog began a whole symphony of his barks, but I didn't move one millimeter. The day oozed by, with the sounds of summer filtering in through the open window. Children squealing in delight at the game they had just invented down the street, birds having endless conversations, and the loud engines of cars rumbling through the neighborhood.

It's only when I've lived in the magical world for so long that I find the muggle world so boring.

I'd barely even moved, finally deciding to pick up my book, when my parents came home from work. Petunia had conveniently snuck in a few minutes before, sending me a threatening look. I'd returned it with a blink, and turned back to my book.

"How were your day's girls?" Dad asked, loosening his ties, reminding me of a certain boy whose tie always hung loose.

"Wonderful!" Petunia gushed, inconspicuously stuffing her shoes under the couch.

"Fine." I shrugged, but put on a light expression. I feel that my parents had gotten very sensitive to me since I started at Hogwarts. They were always worried as to whether muggle things would be so primitive to me now. Just last summer we'd taken a vacation to France. It had been absolutely wonderful, but my parents had seemed to be trying too hard to make me enjoy it. Like it was actually a hassle for me to see the Eiffel Tower. So seeing my smile, they looked fairly satisfied that my day had indeed been fine.

My mother immediately drove into how horrid her day had been, and it didn't take long for Dad to chime in. Dinner was made. More chatting. Dinner was finished. Complaining from Petunia about her friends and their dramatic affairs (not that she knew _for sure_), I was left with washing the dishes. Petunia said they could simply drain, so she got cut loose from drying them.

The usual routine of a summer's night at the Evan's household. I was ready to claw my eyes out.

As much as I had missed my room, my parents, even my street, I'd come to the realization that I couldn't do this for long periods of time anymore. I'd actually taken to rereading my Transfiguration textbook just for a reminder that my world was still real.

My mother called from the living room, inquiring whether I would join them for TV tonight. I stuck the last dish in the strainer. "I don't think so. I'm going to read."

"Oh. Well, maybe later then." The disappointment in her voice hurt a little to hear, but when I heard Petunia's nasally dialogue fighting for dominance over the news report as I passed, I didn't feel so bad.

At least the good thing about the sun going down is how cool my room became with the night air filling it. Throwing my book a book on my bed, I collapsed down after it, preparing to finish a fourth novel in two weeks.

"It's about time you showed up." My head immediately came right back up off of the mattress and right in front of me, outstretched on my window sill was a very muggle clad James. I probably would have fallen over if I had been standing up.

"James? What are you doing here?" My voice fell to a whisper, very aware of the fact that the living room was directly beneath my carpet.

My chest seemed to expand, getting far too big to pass as ordinary as I tried to breathe. James was here. Right here in my bedroom. The person I had thought about every day for the past two weeks. James hopped lightly down from the sill and came to stand before my bed. "I missed you." He announced loudly. I shushed him right away, making wild motions to let him know about the audience downstairs that would not be too happy to find a boy in my room. Somehow he understood, and he sat down beside me on the bed.

His hand fell over mine, binding our fingers together. His gaze never moved from his thumb running over the back of my hand. Then quite suddenly he stood up, pulling my arm up with him.

"Actually that was a lie. Well, it wasn't, because I did miss you, but that's not really why I'm here. I mean, it is, but I came because-" His face was flushed, and he was looking everywhere but me. His hand that was not occupied by mine was nervously adjusting his glasses and running through his hair.

I smiled at his struggle, at how uncomfortable he looked to be standing there in front of me. "James, hey it's ok." I tried to catch his gaze, but when his eyes finally looked back to me they were set and he gripped my shoulders.

"I came here because I realized that I never actually asked you out." His voice had gotten louder again, but I couldn't hush that statement. I could only stare at those striking hazel eyes that wouldn't let mine drop.

"You are telling me that you just flew half way across the country just to ask me out?" It came out slowly as I tried to gather it, and James sort of smiled after I said it, shrugging, looking more embarrassed than before.

"Yeah?" My cheeks felt hot as I giggled slightly at his response and the whole situation.

"James, you do know that you are completely and utterly insane, right?" He laughed loudly, the laugh that I had missed, and rested his forehead right against mine.

"I know that." His smile stayed, but his look became serious. "Will you go out with me Lily?"

A smile spread on my lips. I'd forgotten how much this boy had made me smile in just two short weeks, but now that he was here, my cheek muscles were beginning to grow sore from their lack of use.

I was brought back to a thirteen year old Quidditch player, shaking out his black hair.

"_Go out with me Evans?" He called up from the field, a grin playing about his lips. The redheaded girl shook her head, just barely rolling her eyes._

_Then a fifteen year old appeared. "We should date." A simple statement, but the burning look in his eyes was everything but simple. _

"_I don't think so Potter."_

The redheaded girl had rejected him so easily. And here I was, not even sure what had been running through that girl's head.

"Yes. Yes, James. I'll go out with you."

That same grin from third year that I had found so easy to hate came back, and the tingles began softly in my toes. Once his lips molded onto mine, the tingles exploded everywhere. My hands melted into his hair, pulling him ever closer. I seemed to fit perfectly pressed up close into his chest; his arms wound tightly around my waist. The thirteen year old girl would have fit perfectly as well; she just hadn't known it yet. That girl inside me felt so foolish now while I was here in his arms. I smiled against his mouth, and I felt him return it, tugging me even closer.

"Lily?" My mother's voice sounded on the staircase. I jolted away from James, and we both stared at my door with wide eyes. Out of the corner of my eyes, I could see James glance quickly between me and the door, but I could not look away from where my mother was about to emerge. Her steps kept growing closer.


	20. Sneaking OutWindows

"You have to hide!" My body transitioned into full panic mode, and I couldn't stay still, my hands running through my hair, wringing my wrists, pulling at my shirt.

This was one of those moments where everything begins to slow all around you. My mother sounded light years away, even though she was just down the hall. My eyes were darting everywhere. James wouldn't fit under my bed, and my closet was too cluttered.

I was doomed.

"Lily? Are you in there?" My mother's voice reverberated through my head as my fingernails dug deep into my palms.

"James, you have to…what are you doing?" James was pushing the screen of my window out of place, and letting it fall. He said something to me, but I was a bit distracted, feeling hiccups begin to grow at the back of my throat.

Then the boy who had just asked me to go out with him leapt from the sill, disappearing from my view.

"JAMES!" The screech left my tongue before I could stifle it. That had not just happened. The panic was going too far and I'd only imagined it. It didn't happen.

"James? Who is James, dear?" Whirling on the spot, I faced my mother, her hand still on the doorknob, cocking her head to one side. I didn't even have to glance back at the window to know that James wasn't there. My mother looked at me as if my sanity had just jumped out the window with a certain dead man.

"Err…he's a character in my book." I gestured weakly at the untouched novel lying on my bed.

"Oh." She looked even less convinced than before. "Why were you shouting about a character?"

"Well he just…_fell _out of a window." The room was closing in on me, the walls laughing at my expense, trying to hint to my mother about what had been previously happening within the premises. Whoever said walls didn't have ears must have been a fool.

My mother nodded, though her expression remained unconvinced. "Well one of your favorite movies is on TV, and I didn't know if you wanted to watch it or not."

_Sure Mum, I'd love to! Except there's a slight problem. You see, there might be a chance that there is an unruly black haired splat all over the front walk. Oh, and he also happens to be my boyfriend of two minutes. Otherwise that sounds fantastic!_

"Well the book just got really good, so I think I'll just stay up here."

"Oh, alright. Well come down later if you want, then."

Despite the adrenaline pumping relentlessly through my bloodstream, I could calm down a bit to notice her wary look. "Maybe." I gave her my best smile and thankfully, that seemed to reassure her.

Once the door clicked, my feet flew me to the window and I was doubled over the sill, almost falling out myself. "James!" A hoarse, loud whisper in the night. It must have frightened a nearby family of birds with the sound of flapping that followed.

"Up here." I could practically hear the smirk in his voce. Just about giving myself whiplash, my gaze went up to the black haired boy leaning back, completely relaxed on his Comet 2050. The toerag.

A feeling of foolishness rose up in my belly under that smirk however. He'd nearly given me a heart attack, and I hadn't really tried to hide it from him. "You idiot. You can't just fly around in a muggle neighborhood." I was digging myself deeper, trying to cover up the flush that had spread to my collar.

James laughed loudly; pulling one of his graceful loops that he usually reserved for plunging the Quaffel into one of the hoops on the field and his lips came and brushed mine like they had only minutes ago.

"It's nice to know you worry." I slapped his arm none too gently and pulled back into my room.

"That was too close." I warned, sending him my best McGonagall glare.

"Yeah, and to think that was the first time I'd ever been in your bedroom!" He earned the frown this time. "I'm guessing there's not a chance I'll be getting back in there tonight?" His broom hovered closer to my window, trying to convince me of the opposite of his last statement.

The noises of the movie were buzzing just below me, and I could hear popcorn exploding downstairs. That audience of three would too easily hear anything, even if one of us spoke too loudly, my mother would be up those stairs again in less than a second.

"They'd put bars on my window for sure if I let you back in here." I teased, resting my elbow on the sill. He laughed, floating even closer. His eyes glimmered in the street light, the moon making his grin glow. The hazel orbs searched mine as he inched nearer. They flickered down to my lips once or twice. His hand tucked a piece of hair behind my ear.

"They why don't you come out here?" The question took a while to reach my brain through my ears, but once I had folded over it a few times in my head, my eyes widened.

"What?"

He had on the dangerous look like the one he got when the Marauder's had sewn a school flag out of the Professor's underpants. "Come out here."

"James, my mother almost caught us in my room. If she comes up here and finds me-"

"She won't find out."

I could only guess at how skeptical my expression seemed to him. "You're completely sure about that?"

His lips were only centimeters from mine again. Insufferable git. Why did he have to be the one with the ability to release those butterflies into my stomach?

"I'm a Marauder. I never get caught." I could have begged to differ. Every prank was trademarked by them. They were so proud of their work. Though it was true that they never left evidence, even though everyone knew it was them.

The strangest sense of déjà vu washed over me; I'd been here before in this position. Only the sill was between James and me. His Comet seemed like it would fit two perfectly. All I had to do was swing my leg over the side of my window.

If my mother came up to find no Lily and a conspicuously wide open window, no good things would come from that. But some good things could come from jumping into Romeo's arms as he held them up for me from my balcony.

James didn't need to say anything. Just the way he didn't let my gaze drift form his decided it for me. He gave me a perplexed look when I pushed away from the window, but grinned when my hand clutched my jacket.

"For a little while." I whispered in warning, flicking my light switch off.

James held up his hands innocently, but I knew him far better that that. This boy was far from innocent.

It may have been foolish to climb out of that window and cling to James' waist from behind as he shot high above the clouds, leaving my neighborhood behind with no trace that we'd even been present in my window.

I knew that I could get in trouble for this, but how could we resist it?

A/N: A little bit of an Aladdin feel huh? Thanks for reading guys! Love to all!


	21. Cuddling

I'd lost track of "a little while" a long time ago.

Neither of us had a watch, but I really didn't want to know what time it was.

We'd walked our feet dead all around the downtown of the still wide awake London, and we'd made our way to a secluded park, our feet yearning for a rest.

James plucked a leaf off of a nearby tree and conjured a soft green blanket for us to curl up on.

I felt him smirk as I nestled my head against his chest, and his arms encircled me.

The stars seemed to smile down on us. I could almost imaging them whispering about us as we lay below them.

I heaved sigh, inhaling James' clean scent. His hands find mine and he plays lightly with my fingers. Our breathing synchronizes. The song of the crickets echoes through the night, transporting me back to our night in the common room.

There are no existing words that can place the feeling building up inside of me as we lie there.

"I like this." I mutter, hearing his steady heart beat reverberate in my ear.

"Hm?" He presses a kiss to my head.

"This," I tug on a string from his shirt. "Just us. Cuddling."

Everything shifted, suddenly changing from peaceful and intimate, to tense.

"We are not cuddling."

I lifted my head, staring at him. "What?"

"We're not cuddling." He stated gravely. James Potter was truly the strangest boy in the world.

"Oh really? Then what exactly are we doing?" The skepticism in my voice could have slapped him across the cheek.

His brow creased and his eyes flashed with stubbornness. "We are lying together. With our arms around each other. We're holding each other."

Forget the skepticism, _I_ could have smacked him. "In one word, cuddling."

"No. This is not cuddling."

My feet were close to simply walking away form the boy, while my throat was close to howling with laughter. He looked so disgusted at the prospect of cuddling, yet here we were, committing the act he found so vile. He was either very hypocritical, or very in denial.

"Why do you hate it so much?"

He grimaced, and his eyes averted mine, looking up at the giggling stars. "It's just what disgustingly sweet couples do, and it's all touchy feely and…_girly._"

The laughter was quickly becoming a real threat now. I could feel it tingling on the back of my tongue.

"It's girly."

"Yes." His face was set in stone, and he refused to look at me.

I laid my head back on his chest. His heart beat had sped up, making our united beat uneven.

"That's funny." An idea began brewing in my head, and a smirk replaced the smile threatening of laughter. James was really rubbing off on me too much.

"What's funny?"

I could sense his eyebrow quirking up, and he shifted, looking back down at me.

"That you think cuddling is girly." He did not respond, though I could feel his hazel stare. "Boys cuddle all the time when they have girlfriends. And _I_ thought that having a girlfriend was quite manly for boys. So in turn, cuddling would be manly. But you said it's girly, so it _must_ be."

James held his breath a moment, and I could see his face in my mind perfectly. His eyebrow would still be up, and his chocolate eyes would be scrunched behind his glasses, perplexity masking his face.

It was difficult to stifle the laughter, but I allowed the silence to continue, to let that sink in through his unruly haired head.

I felt the whole movement of his mouth opening through his body, but it closed again. Drumming my fingers against his chest, I waited for his contradiction.

But it never came.

Instead, his hand slid up and brought my lips to his in a searing kiss. He leaned back, making me stretch further so our lips stayed connected. His teeth nipped lightly at my bottom lip, and I pinched his neck, leading him to smile against my lips. But it always happened, when he smiled against my lips, I had to smile.

It's really difficult to kiss someone when you're smiling.

Soon we were laughing into our kisses, and rolling about, messing up the nest that our leaf-blanket had created for us. He deepened our kiss, his tongue sliding against mine.

I'm not sure, but we ended up back in our previous position exactly. I could feel the heat we'd left behind.

"I hate it when you're right." He growled, pulling me closer against his warm, chiseled chest.

"Now you don't. Because then you get this." Pressing a small kiss to his already swollen lips, tugging on his hair lightly.

"Damn."

"Huh?" His eyes were dark as he gazed at me.

"You're right again."

He kissed me again, our lips dancing together, fitting so perfectly, just as we did.

"So you like cuddling now?"

His face squished again, and he opened his mouth, but I didn't let any words come out.

He pulled away from the kiss, laughing loudly.

"Yes," He conceded, embracing me even tighter. "Only cuddling with you though."

"Even if it makes us 'disgustingly sweet?'" I could only imagine my grin. He squeezed my sides, making my squirm closer to him.

"Yeah. And touchy feely." It was lucky for us that there were no passersby to hear our hysterical laughter.

We lost track of "a long time" late into the night, as we lie there cuddling.


	22. Motorcycle Rides

For the first time, apparating was like a fresh of breath air as I stood before the quaint suburban house. The outside looked familiar, but I knew that the inside would be nothing like my house, and everything like what I was missing from Hogwarts.

The letter from Alice had arrived two weeks before the first day of school would. She had gotten "the best idea in the world" to have everybody get together before we started our last year at school.

So here I was, tagging my trunk along behind me as I scuffled up Alice's driveway. I'd left behind my family, my mother and father promising to still send me off on the platform, with my mother eyeing Petunia sternly.

It looked like nobody was home, but the crack my apparition made must have triggered something inside, because Alice and Marly flew out the door towards me.

"You made it!" My friends shouldered my extra bags, but before we could even take them inside, two more deafening cracks echoed up to the pristine blue sky.

One of the boys at the end of the driveway ran a hand through his black hair, a smile on his lips. I was put back to the last time I'd seen that smile.

"_Well that just woke up my parents." James shook his head at me, dismissing my frown as he pushed my creaking window higher for me to fit through._

"_Have you forgotten? I never get caught." The mischievous smile formed, and he nudged me, trying to coax a smile out of me as well. _

_I could hear my mother's footsteps coming down the hallway as James helped me catapult through the window. Burying myself under our leaf-blanket, I feigned sleep the best I could. _

_A crease of light entered my room for just a moment. My mother must have been satisfied with the lump I made on the bed, for she left after a second._

_Peaking under the blanket to make sure the hall light was snuffed out; I dashed to the window again._

"_James? Are you still there?" The neighborhood was completely silent against my whisper._

"_Yeah." James' soft, husky voice came from above me, making me jump._

"_You've really got to stop that." He simply smirked at me, and let his lips brush over mine._

"_You better get into bed little girl. It's far past your bedtime."_

"_Hmm, look who's talking? Isn't yours, what, six o'clock?" _

_I cut off his answering chuckle with a kiss, and he pulled away from me, flying off with a wave._

James didn't make it far up the drive when I tackled him to the ground, making both of our bags go flying off in different directions. I probably should have thought it through, with James' back landing hard on the pavement, and me most likely making the impact worse. He let out a whoosh of air and a groan when the pain hit him, but he must have forgotten it a moment when I smashed my mouth right onto his.

I could hear Alice giggling and Remus and Marly saying something, but it didn't process.

The moment was interrupted however, when a distant rumbling sound caught our attention. James and I pulled away from each other and turned our heads down the street.

Coming up fast was a small object, but for the size it made quite a loud noise. The grumble of the engine was shut off and a boot hit the driveway.

"Goodness can't you two be a little more private about your relationship?" Sirius smirked down at me as I still straddled James.

My cheeks quickly heated, but James seemed unfazed. "You're one to talk." The boys just laughed at each other as James helped both of us stand up.

"Wow. Nice bike." Marly held an appreciative glance in her eyes. I could have sworn that Sirius' chest puffed out a little.

"Yes, it is isn't it? Just got it off of some muggle. I'm trying to fix it up with some magical properties." Sirius sidled up close to Marlene as they both admired the motorbike, and she did not back away. They both must have temporarily gone insane.

"Anybody want to come inside? We can round up some food and go to the backyard!" Alice scooped up as many bags as she could, leading the way into her house. Sirius and Marly followed with Remus rolling his eyes at them as he brought up the rear.

I went to follow, but was held back. James' chest pressed up against me as the front door shut.

"Let's go for a ride." The undertone of his voice promised loads of fun, and loads of danger.

Turning to face him, I saw that the look in his eye mirrored exactly what was weaved into his tone.

"But it's Sirius'!" I glanced at the old bike. It definitely wasn't the new models that I saw the boys around my town riding on, but it wasn't too rusty.

"So? I'm sure he wouldn't mind." James whipped two helmets out of nowhere, and held one out to me.

He didn't even falter at my skeptical look. "Have you ever driven a motorcycle before?"

A smirk came into my vision. "No. But how hard can it be."

This was against every warning thought in my mind. James can't ride a motorcycle. He probably doesn't even know how to drive a car. It would be the stupidest decision of my life to get on the back of that motorcycle.

"You say that, and still expect me to get on that thing?"

James just smiled at me, the "I never get caught" smile. Damn him.

"You're going to be the death of me." I whispered, moving closer to him.

His lips pressed lightly against my temple. "I actually think you're going to be the death of me."

"I'm not the one trying to convince you to get on a death trap."

His laugh rumbled through him and into me, just like the engine of the motorcycle had.

"Would you trust me if I told you it's not much different than riding a broom?"

"You just said you'd never ridden a motorcycle."

"I haven't. But neither had Sirius and I was there when he got this thing."

"I still don't believe you."

"Maybe I'm naturally talented?"

"Don't make me laugh James." I said in all seriousness.

I hated how he could keep his smile up even as I gave him my best scowl.

"You know you want to." His voice tempted me.

My fingers fidgeted nervously as they clung to the motorcycle helmet. He arched an eyebrow. He was laying his challenge right in front of me. I couldn't just leave it sitting, mocking me.

"You're paying for my funeral." I warned as I placed the helmet over my hair.

"I won't need to." He fastened my helmet, making sure it was tight enough.

James turned the key in the ignition, making the motorcycle blaze to life as I mounted it behind him, cursing myself over and over even as I returned his smile.

He backed us up into the street, and changed gears, revving the engine.

"HEY!" Sirius' enraged shout echoed out as he stormed out of Alice's front door, the other three rushing out after him, wondering at the sight.

I could feel James shake with laughter as he only revved the engine louder.

"Don't you dare Prongs! James, if you-IF YOU BREAK ANYTHING YOU'RE PAYING!"

But Sirius' warnings were left in the distance as we sped off. I wasn't even sure that James knew where he was going, but he sure acted like he did. He led us through a maze of streets, neighborhoods, and parks.

"Tell me why I did this again?" I shouted at a stop sign. James just hooted with laughter, and jolted us forward, leading us into a cove of trees.

The wind whipped around us as we sped down the roads, surrounded by the green of the trees and the blue of the sky making the perfect contrast above us. Somehow everything seemed more beautiful on the back of the motorcycle. I hugged James tighter, fascinated by the sight of the world rushing past us. One of his hands rested on my clasped fingers, and he sped up. I kept thinking a police squad would come chasing after us, but no sirens sounded.

"_I never get caught."_ I smiled as I leaned my head on his shoulder.

I could now see why James found it so exhilarating to break the rules. I actually let out a laugh as we sped through a town. We were nowhere near Alice's any longer.

The sun was creeping below the tree line when James slowed the motorbike, pulling over to the side of the road.

"Are we out of gas?"

"Nah, Sirius rigged it so it doesn't need gas." Huh. Maybe Black did have some brains in his head. I could just imagine him grumbling around Alice's house, moping the whole time we were gone.

We watched the sunset sink for a short while before James started up the bike again, turning back the way we came. I was surprised when landmarks began to look familiar again. Maybe he had known where he was going.

The sky was just turning navy blue, the stars peaking out when we pulled back onto Alice's street.

"Worth it?" I could barely hear him over the wind and the engine.

"Worth it." I answered, my lips right against his ear.


	23. Boxers

Alice was baking us all pancakes when I walked into the kitchen. She gave me a bubbly good morning and tossed me a pancake. Taking my seat, I was given the deepest glare I've ever gotten, including Petunia's nasty contortions, from Sirius. His arms were crossed, and he looked so much like a six year old in a time out, I barely refrained from rolling my eyes.

Marlene was trying inadvertently to catch Sirius' attention, by mentioning things very loudly to Alice and Remus that Sirius would usually have jumped right into. But he was a bit busy gaining wrinkles in his forehead at me.

I just wanted to shout that it wasn't my idea to steal his motorcycle, but that would probably just make things worse. I was more content to have him glare at me for awhile than actually get in a verbal argument with him.

Before I could even cut a piece of my pancake, Alice spoke up.

"Is James up yet? His pancakes will get cold!"

Remus just chortled to himself, shaking his head in response. He moved to get up, but Sirius broke out of his angry trance.

"Why doesn't Lily go get him? He's her boyfriend. They're all in cahoots. Why do we have to get up? Maybe they'll sneak out the window."

I wanted to whirl on Black and say _"Been there, done that,"_ But I felt that wouldn't go over well either.

"Yeah, go wake up your boyfriend!" Alice giggled behind the spatula.

Giving one last longing look at my syrup-soaked pancake, I stood back up, heading back the direction I'd just come from.

Marlene and I had slept in Alice's room, and the boys had slept in the upstairs guest room at the end of the hall. I didn't really bother to knock on the door, and simply waltzed right in.

"It was so nice of Alice to make you pancakes, and you're up here still slee-"

I had been expecting to find a lump underneath the blankets that would groan and throw a pillow at me. What was really in front of me was no such thing.

James turned to face me, where I was gripping the doorknob for support.

It may have been silly, considering I was already seventeen years old, and James and I had been together for a while now, but the blush rebelled against me and spread over my cheeks and probably down my neck.

For he stood there clad in nothing but his plaid boxers.

He held his shirt in his hands, but he'd frozen as well. His hair looked as it always did, but he had misplaced his glasses. The sun was coming in right behind him, making his skin glow warmly.

"Lily?" James asked, his voice still husky from sleep. My stomach was somersaulting over and over.

"Alice wants you down for dinner!" I practically shouted at him.

His eyebrow quirked up, and his eyes somehow could still focus right on me. "Dinner…at nine in the morning?"

My blush deepened over my cheeks, and I clutched the doorknob tighter. "Er, I mean, breakfast!"

Whirling, I sprinted back down the stairs. It must have looked odd with no James following me, but before anybody could ask me anything, I shoved the forkful of pancake I'd left behind in my mouth. The image of his boxers was burned in my eyelids. Not that it was necessarily a bad thing, but I couldn't keep thinking about it, or I was bound to have a heart attack.

James' footsteps filled the doorway, and I felt my arms freeze up. It was like last year all over again.

"There you are! Want some pancakes?" Alice greeted as she came out of the kitchen, holding up a plate for him, but James was looking right at me; I could feel his gaze prickle the back of my neck.

Grabbing the plate, he sat down in the chair right across from me, but I kept my eyes on my plate.

Well, I tried to.

My eyes kept wondering over to the buttons on his shirt that were not fully buttoned, leaving only a few inches of skin showing. But they were a torturous few inches.

Alice gushed over breakfast, just excited about the fact that Frank was coming today, and Marly had finally gotten Sirius to speak, though a bit of a pout was still hanging around him. Alice finally finished with the last of the pancakes and came bounding around the counter, dropping her orange juice glass.

James, being the nearest to her, immediately left his chair, bending to help her. In the process, he gave me a nice view of those damn boxers peaking out of his jeans.

Sucking in a breath suddenly, I tried to look away from the cursed things.

"I'm so sorry James! Did I spill any on you?"

James waved away Alice's worries, laughing it off as he began to pick up the broken glass. He was collecting the small pieces in the cup of his hand. Every time he would bend further forward to reach a shard, another inch of the plaid cloth became more visible. Why was no one else noticing this? Sure, they weren't hanging out that much, only a few inches, but they were still right there!

"Damn it," he whispered quietly, bending back, making his shirt cover the lip of his boxers again.

"Oh my goodness!" Alice tried to reach for James, but he pulled his red hand away from her…

Red hand?

I was out of my seat in less than a second and across the floor, kneeling in the sticky orange liquid next to him. His hazel eyes were burning into my face with his stare as I took his hand in mine, inspecting the cut.

It was like everybody in the room disappeared. Following me, he stood up as I dragged him with me into the kitchen, and over to the sink, wetting a cloth.

"You're not looking at me." He whispered as I blotted the cloth over the cut.

I met his gaze evenly, not looking away from those deep chocolate orbs.

"That's not what I meant."

"Then what did you mean?"

He caught my lips in a kiss very suddenly, his hand that wasn't gushing blood coming up to my waist and pulling me against him.

"You're bleeding." I stated simply, pulling away from his lips.

He didn't let me get very far, keeping his forehead pressed against mine.

"My lips aren't." I dodged his advance again, pressing his cut. He breathed in sharply.

"So why are you avoiding me?"

"I'm not."

"You're lying." He stretched back against the counter as I wrapped the bandage over his hand. Leaning back caused his shirt to ride up, and those boxers to make an appearance again.

"You're not looking at me again." He sang softly, his voice rumbling deep in his chest.

My eyes traitorously flitted to the tiny lip showing above his jeans, and I may have pulled the knot on the bandage a little too tight.

His gaze was still piercing me.

"I'm not avoiding you." I asserted, rinsing the cloth I'd used to clean up the cut.

James moved closer to me, positioning himself right behind me, his arms winding around my waist. His lips landed on the side of my neck and he mumbled something.

"What?" I whispered, leaning into him.

"I love you." He whispered, pressing a kiss to my ear.

A small laugh escaped my lips.

"I love you." I answered, turning and kissing him full on the lips. I left him by the sink as I walked ahead, making to leave the kitchen.

"I love your boxers too." Whirling, I sprinted from the kitchen. I didn't get a chance to see his face, but I could hear his laughter through the wall.


	24. Season Changes

Sirius flicked his wand to create a big pile of leaves again. "Yeah, but I had to fix it because _someone_ had the need to take their girlfriend for a ride!" He answered Marlene's question about the motorcycle. She'd been quite interested about the thing ever since we'd left Alice's. And Sirius had been ready to complain about James and my "escapade" as he put it, since we'd left Alice's.

It hadn't really needed to be fixed. Black was just being overdramatic. He still hadn't gotten over the silly fact that James and I had gone for a joyride.

He took a running start and leapt for the pile. James and Remus smirked at each other and both swished their own wands, causing the pile to move a few meters, making Sirius land quite hard on his bum.

I could feel James' laughter shaking through as it traveled through our joined hands like an electric shock. Glancing up just in time, I saw Sirius try to hide his laughter as he raged at the two, making some water from the Black Lake splash up on the offenders.

Rolling my eyes, I turned to look back up at the branches that were growing bare. It made me smile to think that I'd fallen out of this tree last year. At that thought, I pulled James hand closer to me, taking it in both of my own.

The oak's leaves were being shed in shades of orange and red, some still a light brown. A light breeze shuddered through the highest branches, making more leaves begin to flutter their way to down.

I was watching one deep red leaf's voyage when my vision was suddenly obstructed. James' glasses began to slide down the bridge of his nose as he smiled down at me.

"Hi." I whispered.

"What're you doing?" He pressed his forehead against mine, our noses brushing.

"Nothing."

"That's boring."

"Not really."

His look was very skeptical as he lay down beside me, pushing closer so that his back wouldn't end up on one of the tree's roots.

"You say it's not boring. So what do we do now?"

"We do nothing James."

"You're wrong. This is boring."

A sigh escaped me as I let my head rest against his shoulder. "Just watch the leaves, like I've been doing. It's so peaceful."

"But then you weren't doing nothing. You were doing something."

"You're insufferable."

"You say that to me a lot."

Maybe peaceful was the wrong word. Marlene and Sirius could be heard in a snarky argument only inches away. And with James this close to me, my skin was beginning to buzz. It was like the leaves responded to the atmosphere, as they fell more agitatedly than they had before.

"I see what you did here."

Letting my eyes drift closed, I responded, "What did I do?"

"This was just a ploy to get me to cuddle with you again."

The laughter burst out before I could stop it. "Maybe it was, maybe it wasn't."

"It was."

I shook my head, feeling him play with my fingers. "Would you believe that I just wanted you to come enjoy fall with me?"

"No."

As I had learned from him, I pretended to be offended. "And why wouldn't you?"

He shrugged, an arm sneaking around me. "I don't know. It's just kind of…weird."

"Well you're kind of weird."

"Really?"

"Well yeah. You've made me dance in kitchens, sneak out of my window, get on a motorcycle you had no idea how to drive-"

"Ha ha, Lily. You're very funny." Sarcasm dripped from his voice as he landed a kiss on my temple, pinching my waist.

A leaf fell right onto my nose, conjuring an even louder bout of laughter to erupt out of the both of us.

Sirius and Marlene must have argued their way back up to the school, and we were left with the soft breeze and afternoon sun making its way down towards the mountains surrounding.

"Do you want to head up?" James whispered, nudging me. I angled my head up just an inch to see that we were the only ones out on the grounds. For a Saturday afternoon, that was pretty rare; even if the air was getting colder.

Turning my head back towards the leaves, I shook my head, relaxing against James again.

Nothing is ever truly silent in fall. It's almost like you can hear winter coming around the corner. But it wasn't an annoying, obvious sound. It was like how the sound of James' heartbeat had become a natural background sound in my ears. It actually felt strange when I couldn't hear that quiet thumping. So the sound of winter was actually comforting.

However, I'd never liked how quickly winter followed fall; we were never given enough time to enjoy all of the colors the trees presented until they were bear. But just lying here with James, it somehow didn't bother me anymore. It felt like we could lie here forever, the leaves just falling endlessly around us. Even though this was our last year, it still seemed like we had all the time in the world. And as the clock ticked down to our graduation, I was glad for James' hand in mine.

I was looking forward to another year with him.

A/N: Finals are over! More updating is coming! I know it's December already, but it still looks like fall outside, so this seemed appropriate! Thanks for reading all!


	25. Playing in the Snow

Heat was still emanating from the fireplace when I woke up, rubbing my eyes as I sat up from the couch. My Transfiguration essay had slid to the floor, but my textbook was still resting on my lap.

Scanning the room with still cloudy eyes, I searched for the boy who had served as my pillow during the night. He stood with his back turned to me as he stared out the window.

"What're you doing up?" I asked through a yawn, stretching my limbs.

It was a miracle he even understood me, but he turned on his sock covered heel, his eyes bright. Leaning back against the stone wall, a grin tugged at his lips. His trousers hung low on his hips, giving me a peak of his boxers, and his protocol oxford shirt was going against protocol with the top four buttons undone.

"It's snowing," It was almost comical that he could look so attractive, yet sound like such a small child.

I quickly glanced past him out the window. Snowing was an understatement. I guess winter decided to barge in on us and plop down. Looking back at James, I could see him as a little five year old, brimming with excitement. He probably would have been jumping around the room if he couldn't help it.

I wasn't about to hide it however: I was probably just as excited as he was. I think everyone, whether they like snow or not, enjoys watching snow fall. I doubted that James was the type to sit and watch the snow pass by though.

Slowly, I stood up, walking towards him. I pressed a small kiss to his lips, my fingers finding his hat where he'd left it on the window sill. Tugging it over his ears, I sent him most likely a mirror image of the mischievous smile he was sending me.

It felt like only a moment, and I was already being pushed out of the giant Entrance Hall doors before I was even done donning my attire.

"James! Give me my gloves!" But he was flying by me, tripping over the huge mounds of snow. His laughter echoed over the whole grounds.

We were the only things stirring out here. Even the Forbidden Forest was beside itself, letting the snow cover the branches. The snow enveloped the landscape, transforming the whole appearance. It just kept coming too. There was no sign of the sun; only miles of snow clouds.

My admiration of the grounds was interrupted by a cold smash in the face. I can't even imagine what my face looked like, but it caused more laughter to erupt from James.

"Do you want your gloves, or not?" He taunted, waving them in the air, his smirk making an appearance over his scarf.

Every year, I always forget how to run in the snow. It was piling up, and was already up to my knees. It's amazing that I even reached James at all.

He kept trudging backwards to dodge me, but he overstepped, and tipped backwards. It was my turn to ring out a measure of laughs. James practically disappeared underneath all of the snow we'd already gotten.

It was hard to move my legs with my laughter still jolting through me, but I managed to get closer to the hole he made.

"Care to give my gloves back?" James looked up at me, with tiny snow crystals stuck to his face. His cheeks were already pink. I scanned his person, but my gloves were nowhere in sight.

I should have seen the smirk sooner, but I was focused more on looking for my gloves. I was leaning over him in an attempt to find them, and his foot hooked around my ankle, pulling me down on top of him.

Falling more sideways than he did, I got a face full of snow. James shook beneath me, whether from his laughing or from how cold he was I wasn't sure.

"You jerk!" I accused as I spat snow out of my mouth.

His eyes were blazing when I looked down at them. I could never look away from those eyes easily. But I still needed my gloves. My hands were beginning to sting.

"Whoa! Hey now!" James shouted, wiggling beneath me as I searched his pockets.

"Aha!" Whipping out my gloves, I made to move off of him, but James rolled us over so I was pressed into the snow. He kissed me quickly, then leapt up and began running again. The bugger.

James led me half way around the grounds, both of us disturbing the calm of the day, kicking up snow in our wakes. A few times, I thought I saw a few faces peaking out of the windows, but I didn't have time to see if I recognized them.

My legs were sore, and my lungs were complaining of breathing in so much cold air by the time I finally caught sight of that mop of black hair again. I could only see a peak of it above a snow mound.

"I think even my boxers are soaked." He croaked out when I approached. Apparently his lungs were a little tired too.

"Well, you only have yourself to blame."

He whipped his head in my direction as I collapsed next to him, the snow not as comfortable as it looked. "You're the one who put my hat on!"

I just shrugged, staring into those blazing eyes again.

"We should go inside." He whispered, reaching a mitten covered hand over to touch my probably very pink cheek.

James stoked the fire, making the flames lick the brick at the sides. He smiled as he stood up, slipping his socks off and laying them by the other half of our clothes that had soaked up all of the extra snow. He sauntered back over, and slid underneath the wool blanket with me.

"Today was perfect." I whispered, nudging my head underneath his arm and pressing closer to him.

His arm tightened around me. "It was?"

I nodded, taking in a deep breath. I could feel James' smile as he had us sink deeper into the couch. I didn't bother to check the time; my eyelids were too droopy to be able to anyway. Letting them fall closed, I fell back into the same position I'd been in when I woke up this morning.


	26. Mistletoe and Thoughtful Gifts

The door slammed open, making me jump almost a foot in the air.

"My life is a disaster!" Alice whined, making a beeline for her bed.

Even though I was Head Girl this year, I still stayed in the girl's dorm once in awhile. James stayed with the Marauders often as well, even as he was Head Boy.

"Why is your life a disaster, Alice?" Marly sighed, holding up another nail polish color to inspect.

"I don't know what to get Frank for Christmas!" Alice then brought her fist up to her mouth, as if the thought would draw uncontrollable sobs.

"Alice, it's not the end of the world. What did you get him last year?" I asked, sitting up on my mattress.

"A sweater," she almost seemed to be shaking.

"Well that sounds fine to me," Marly commented.

"I can't get him a sweater this year! I got him a sweater last year!"

"Well, I don't know what to get him! You're the one that's been dating him for three years!" Marly rolled her eyes, slightly laughing.

Alice just groaned again, hugging her pillow.

"Lily?" She looked so small and sad.

"Hm?"

"What are you getting James?"

My throat tightened slightly. That question caught me a little off guard.

"I…I haven't really thought about it."

"You mean you don't know?"

I shook my head, tugging at the sleeves of my sweater.

"Well, what would you get him?" Alice urged.

"I don't know, Al," My eyes found their way out the window, where students had covered James' and my tracks from a few days ago.

What do you get a guy that you've only been dating for a few months for Christmas?

The only thing wrong with that question is it felt like I'd been with James for so much longer than that.

"What did you get Frank for your first Christmas together?"

She smiled fondly, "I got him a Puddlemere Poster," a small giggle came from her, "He doesn't even like Quidditch that much. But he still has it up on his wall."

I sighed, falling back on my bed. I hadn't been worrying about presents two minutes ago, and then Alice just had to burst in and thrust my mind into a cloud of worries. I had no idea what to get James.

"What do you think you'll get from Sirius, Marly?" Alice asked.

"Socks." Marly answered without looking up.

"Well that doesn't tell us anything," I scoffed, "Sirius gets everybody socks. I still remember the ones that giggle every time I take a step."

"Yeah…mine stared up at me and blinked every time I took a step." Alice looked out into space for a minute, and then shivered. "I'm pretty sure they're still somewhere at the back of my closet."

Marly and Alice continued discussing all of the strange pairs of socks they'd gotten from Sirius over the years, but I glanced back out the window, their voices muffling behind my thoughts.

What should I get James? I racked my brain, but I came up empty.

Dinner rolled around, and my feet followed Alice and Marly, but my brain was still gone.

"What if you got him something from Zonko's?" Marly offered.

I shook my head. "He's probably already got the whole store in his dorm."

"You could always get him a sweater!" Alice said through her giggles. I nudged her, a smile cracking on my lips.

The Marauders were nowhere in sight at dinner, and maybe that was for the better. I didn't want the conversation about presents to come up around James; I didn't want to have to lie through my teeth that I had something for him already.

I only had one day until Christmas Eve, and things weren't looking up. Alice had decided to get Frank a book about adventures with dwarves. Marly had even got Sirius something special, though she wasn't telling.

And my head was still a blank slate.

James and the Marauders were apparently very busy for whatever they were planning, because I barely saw him before Christmas. Once at breakfast, the next time in the hallway on my way back from the library. He'd given me a quick smile, and kept on his merry way.

I was truly miserable. It wasn't even this hard for me to think of a present for Petunia.

So while everyone finished up their Christmas shopping, I shoved my hands in my pockets and looked through all of the shop windows. Zonko's wouldn't have anything…Honeyduke's would be too simple.

I was passing the Three Broomstick's, thinking I saw Alice and Marly in there, but when I went to open the door, I collided with someone.

"Well, fancy that. Looks like we had the same idea."

Even with the very Grinchy mood I was in, his voice could still make me smile.

The heat of the bar reached my cheeks, making me sigh. James' arm found its way around me as he took my coat off. I glanced up at him, if a bit shyly. I wonder if he could tell that I hadn't gotten him a present yet.

A muffled laughing reached my ears. The two of us turned, and Madame Rosmerta was surrounded with Sirius, Remus, Peter, Marly and Alice, and they were gesturing above us. Tilting my head up, I saw a small green sprig of a plant above us.

My cheeks heated as my eyes flitted to James' and back up to the mistletoe. In front of the crowded bar, James' hand came up and held my warm cheek, letting his lips caress mine lightly. I think I visibly shuddered, clutching his snow covered cloak.

Whistles filled the pub, most of them coming from Sirius. Madame Rosmerta was apologizing, but she'd "had to do it".

The whole time drinking butterbeer, I don't think my cheeks quite lost their color. It didn't really help with James' arm around me. He laughed with Sirius and Remus about their latest Quidditch game, his smile never ceasing. He kept needing to push up his glasses because he threw his head back whenever he laughed. It just made me smile to see him.

He caught me once, looking up at him. "What are you smiling at?" He teased.

I just shook my head and took a sip of my butterbeer. I'd finally gotten an idea of what to get him.

"Wow…thanks Sirius…they're, er, great!" Alice held the slimy socks away from her, miraculously keeping a smile on her face.

Sirius looked completely oblivious, nodding at her.

Marly interrupted the awkward situation. "Ok! It's Lily's turn to open one!"

I grabbed one with my name on it. "From Peter," I muttered, sending a small smile his way as I opened the wrapping paper. "It's cheese."

"Yeah," Peter nodded, apparently content with himself.

"You know I don't really like cheese that much, right?"

"Yeah."

"…Do you want the cheese, Peter?"

"Yeah!" Peter reached across to me, taking back his chunk of cheese.

After everyone finished, we all broke apart, Alice and Frank going off together, conspicuously in the direction of mistletoe. Sirius attempted to show Marly how her new heart socks worked when she walked. Peter enjoyed his cheese that he'd practically given himself.

I was about to go fetch the book my parents had sent me, when a hand fell on my shoulder.

"You're going to leave without getting your present?"

Whirling, I found James' lips on mine, just like they had been at Madame Rosmerta's.

"Is this my present?" I whispered against his lips.

He laughed, pulling away. "No, this is." From behind his back, he pulled a small wrapped box.

"I have one for you too." Moving to the couch quickly, I pulled out his present from behind the pillow. "I didn't have time to wrap it."

James' face lit up. "Quidditch Through The Ages! I lost my copy in first year!" My stomach did flips just to see his smile. There's always a greater pleasure in watching someone open a gift you gave them than opening your own.

I pulled the wrapping off of the small box slowly, and tilted it open a little nervously.

My breath was lost. "James-I, how much was this? I can't-"

"It was my mother's. I added the charm though."

The bracelet was simple; only a gold chain. The charm was a small lily, shimmering in the light from the fireplace.

"It's beautiful, James." It was surprising that I wasn't crying already, so I quickly buried my face into his chest, not letting tears show on my cheeks. Feeling his arms come around me in a tight hug, I mumbled a small "Merry Christmas."

"Merry Christmas, love." He whispered, pressing a kiss to my forehead.

A/N: Two chapters for Christmas! Woo! I hope all of you had wonderful holidays! Thank you for reading!


	27. Favorite Books and Surprise Attacks

The sun was streaming through the tall library windows as I ran my fingers along the cracked spines of books.

With NEWTS hanging above our heads, the professors were cracking down on us, making free time nearly nonexistent. Today however, a potion had gone wrong, leaving Slughorn in bed with terrible boils. Since the professors were too preoccupied with their own subjects, no one had been able to fill in, so our class had ended up with a free period.

I told myself I was going to take this time to study, but when I passed the empty library, it had been too tempting to pass up. I hadn't had time to read with all of the work weighing down on our shoulders, and my fingers were itching to turn pages that weren't from a textbook.

I passed a few more shelves until I finally reached the small purple book. It was the first novel I'd read by a magical author, and it was still my favorite. Pulling it from its snug spot, I was about to make my way back towards the windows, but I backed into someone.

"Oh, I'm sorr-" My voice stopped in my throat as lips pressed against the side of my neck. I gasped lightly, even though I knew exactly how it was. The familiar smell came to my nose, and I always got the same feeling when he was around.

He pulled this sort of thing all of the time. Coming up behind me when I was least expecting it, kissing me. I should be used to this by now. But every time, he still caused my heart to leap and go double time.

"I was wondering where you'd disappeared off to," I mock scolded, turning to face him.

James leaned against the shelves, holding my gaze. He just shrugged, a smirk making an appearance. With a response like that, it wouldn't be wrong to assume that a prank would be happening sometime tonight.

"What are you doing here by yourself?" He asked, eyeing the book in my hand.

I copied him, shrugging, and going back around the shelf. His footsteps followed me through the maze.

"Did you hear about Slughorn?" He asked nonchalantly. I stopped, feigning to study the titles on the spines.

"The boils? Of course," James brought his head dangerously close to mine.

"No, the potion," he pressed a quick kiss to my cheek before jumping back, looking innocent. "Rumor is he was brewing a love potion for Madame Pomfrey."

I couldn't help but giggle at that. "A love affair at Hogwarts?" Glancing at him, I could have sworn his eyes darkened a shade or two.

"Who would have guessed?" He added, his arms coming up on either side of me, making my back hit the shelf.

I clutched my novel near my chest, and he pressed in just as close. Our smiles mirrored each other as his forehead touched mine.

My heart sped up from the double time it was previously at, and goose bumps covered my skin. Every time we got this close, it still felt like the first time. My eyelids began to close lightly, and I could feel the warmth of his lips barely touching mine.

"Oh! Um, sorry, I didn't mean to, um…yeah." I felt my cheeks burn as the small first year who had interrupted us hustled away.

James and I were frozen in our position against the book shelf for only a moment longer. We both tried to smother our laughter, for the girl would definitely hear it in the silence of the library.

I moved away from him again, continuing on my path through the maze. He let out a sigh as he followed me.

"What's the depressed sigh for?" I asked with a hint of teasing in my voice. I may have held the same little bit of disappointment as well; my heart was still racing, but I wasn't about to reveal that to James.

Quickly turning another corner, I made to got down another aisle. James's hand fell on my shoulder, pulling me back to face him. His lips descended on mine instantly, and without delay my arms wound around his neck, holding him as close as possible. This is what I needed my free periods for. Not studying. Work for the upcoming NEWTS had taken away a lot of time that I could spend with James. It was basically a "Good morning," and a "Good night", with a couple of quick words and kisses sneaked in throughout the day.

A small squeal broke through the haze over my mind. I jolted back, surprised, and hit my head on the shelf. James' hand came up along with mine to touch the sore spot, but I'd moved back too far, and he practically fell into me.

A gasp came from the same spot the squeal had come from, and a huge crash reverberated in my ears.

I was on the floor, James holding me against him, and the same little first year girl was standing above us, her eyes wide and jaw hanging.

I guess we'd fallen a tad too hard against the shelf…and the shelf had collapsed beneath us. It was written all over the girl's face that we were in trouble, and she was not going to be the one to deny it.

Without hesitation, James pulled me to my feet. Before I could say anything to the girl, James was sprinting out of the library, pulling me with him.

"At least Madame Pince wasn't in there!" James shouted over his shoulder with a guffaw. The Marauders and the librarian already had a rocky relationship. What just happened would have shoved it right off of the edge.

It wasn't until we got to the Great Hall, when lunch was just starting, that we heard the scream from up in the library.

Everyone's eyes turned up to the ceiling, and some small screams of surprise were heard around the hall. My cheeks were already starting to go pink, but James kissed my head, placing an arm around my shoulder and pulling me close. He shot me a secret smile, and led us calmly over to the Gryffindor table, as if we had no idea what that screaming could be about.


	28. Stupid Fights and Aftermath

***A/N: A reviewer actually guessed what I had been planning for this chapter, so that was kind of funny! Well done to you!

"I don't really give a shit, Lily!" James' voice broke through my rant.

My face was probably as red as my hair, and my eyes flashed to his burning wood eyes.

"Well you should 'give a shit' _James,_ since it is your fault!"

His frown grew deeper at that. "My fault? What the hell did I do? I haven't even been here for half the day!"

I groaned, throwing my hands up in frustration. "Of course you weren't! Out with the boys planning a prank, huh?"

James stole my signature move and rolled his eyes at me. "What of it?" He spluttered, throwing his cloak down on the couch.

"Oh, nothing," I sighed, keeping my glare in place, "You're just _always_ planning a stupid prank."

"What would you rather I be doing?" He growled low in his throat. I thought his glasses might crack with how his eyes sizzled.

"I'm not going to answer that." I hissed, whirling away from him. I could feel my traitorous eyes stinging.

"Why not?"

"Because I don't have to answer to you!"

James said something afterwards, but I didn't hear it as the portrait closed behind me, and I wished I could have slammed it shut.

"Trouble in paradise?" Sirius smirked my way as he passed me going into the common room.

"Shut up!" I huffed back, stalking away in the opposite direction.

Ignoring every strange look that followed me down the hallways, I tried not to think about the past few minutes.

James and I rarely fought; of course we had spats often enough, but when we really rolled up the sleeves and fought, we clashed together.

I was never one to walk away from a fight. I always held my ground. But with my eyes still threatening me with a stinging feeling, I kept on stomping down the hall.

The corridors began emptying as students made their way to dinner. I turned a few more corners and quickly clambering up the wall, I threw myself into the circular window alcove. Keeping my eyes on the ceiling to try and fight the tears back, I tried to clear my head.

I couldn't stand yelling at James anymore.

Sure, I was still angry at him, but I would rather seethe in silence instead of seeing his eyes burn while we shouted. Whenever we got in arguments, it just reminded me of the previous years. The ones before we'd gotten together, before we'd even been friends. I didn't want to think about those years; they left a hollow pit in my stomach.

I couldn't even remember what we had been arguing about. I don't remember who started it or how it started. But I couldn't go back to the common room now. Not after what we'd said. I knew very well that we both still needed time to cool down.

My eyes drifted out the window to the reflection of the setting sun in the lake. I tried to control my breathing, even as the tears still threatened to overflow. I felt like the biggest bitch. How could I go back and act like my thirteen year old self with James.

I could only close my eyes and wonder what he was thinking right now.

When my eyelids next opened, the sun had disappeared under the horizon line, and the hallway below me was dimly lit with the torches already. Taking a deep breath, I carefully made my way down the wall, my legs shaking violently. I hugged my arms close to me as I dawdled back to the common room.

Since I was Head Girl, the prefects now patrolling the hallways simply passed me by, even without my badge latched onto my chest. One of them tried to make conversation with me, but it sounded like an out of tune radio to my ears.

The pit in my stomach grew deeper the closer I came to the portrait of the Fat Lady. "Acid pops," I mumbled the password gloomily. The Fat Lady tittered on about me being out too late, but the portrait opened wide anyway. I felt like kicking the wall, kicking myself, or even giving James a nice kick.

"Lily! There you are! Goodness, I was starting to worry." Alice ran over to hug me. Marly looked up from her place on the couch next to Sirius. But if Black was still down here at this hour…

In the corner chair, a mop of black hair was only visible, as his face was buried in his hands. As if in slow motion, like it was the first time he had moved since I left earlier, James looked up from his hands.

He looked exhausted, with bags having formed under his eyes. His brow was creased with worry, but his jaw was still set shut. His eyes held mine fast. They were wide, with no hint of the earlier burning.

"Are you alright?" Alice tried to catch my eye.

James stood slowly, running a shaky hand through his tangled hair. Words he wanted to say were spilling out of his expression, but his lips stayed as stubbornly shut as mine. Neither of us wanted to be the first one to say something.

"No." I tried to say it simply, but my voice came out hoarse and cracked. James practically cringed to hear it.

Moving away from Alice, I quickly strode to the girl's staircase. I barely spared James a glance, but I could see him move towards me.

My eyes began stinging terribly again, so all I could do was turn away and sprint up the steps, slamming the dormitory door behind me.

I may have been angry at James, but I was more angry at myself.


	29. Receiving Flowers From Someone

"Wake up Lily! It's Valentine's Day!" Marlene squealed, shaking the mattress beneath me. She thrust the curtains aside, letting the morning sun peak through. I tried to hide underneath the covers, but Marly pulled them off, cackling evilly. I hit her with my pillow and leaned against my headboard, hugging my pillow tightly to my chest.

Marlene kept laughing until she noticed I wasn't smiling along with her.

"Is there something wrong?" A wary expression suddenly covered her face. My eyes immediately began stinging, and I looked away from her, my gaze drifting out the window.

"Lils?" She sat down on the bed facing me just as Alice walked out of the bathroom, completely decked out in pink and red. Her smile died once she took in the situation.

"What did I miss?"

I ignored the question and buried my face into the softness of my pillow.

"I'm not sure," Marly said, trying to pull my pillow away from me. "Lily, talk to us." She sounded like my mother.

"Did something happen with James?" Alice guessed. My head came right up to look at her. She must have seen the shock in my eyes. "I'm not an idiot. First, you two didn't even speak in the common room last night. And second, you even said you weren't ok."

Both of my friends sent my skeptical looks, and I couldn't just hide behind my pillow anymore. My throat was closing on me, so I just nodded.

"What happened?" Marly asked, her voice growing gentle.

I told them the whole story. I told them about the argument, about how I reacted, about everything. It was embarrassing, but I revealed everything I'd been feeling yesterday and into this morning.

And it was exactly what I needed. Alice and Marly listened quietly to the entirety of my rant.

There was a period of silence after I finished, and I let my head fall back against the headboard.

"Lily, there's nothing to worry about." Alice assured, patting my leg. I raised my eyebrows at her in disbelief.

She just rolled her eyes at me. "Do you know how often Frank and I fight?"

Even Marly looked shocked at that one. "But you guys are perfect!" She shouted.

Alice simply rolled her eyes again. "All lovers fight. That's why there's such a thing as a 'lover's quarrel'."

"You didn't see his face." I croaked out, the pit in my stomach becoming prevalent again.

Alice sighed, sounding near exasperation. "You love him, right?"

The question caught me off guard. "Yes." It was automatic. Of course I loved James.

"And he loves you. This fight didn't destroy you two. You just have to move past it. You said yourself it was something stupid."

I couldn't think of anything to say. My knuckles were white from clutching my pillow so hard.

Marlene was apparently done with the quiet though. "Alright! No more sadness! Time for you to get out of bed and put on your Valentine's things so we can go down and eat some heart-shaped pancakes!" She pulled me off of the mattress and pushed me towards the bathroom.

My friends linked their arms in mine as we made our way down to the Great Hall. I'm not sure if they were trying to make me feel better or if they were making sure I wouldn't try to make a break for it.

The Hall was buzzing with excitement. Cupids were flying everywhere carrying valentines to their recipients, and small hearts were floating in the ceiling along with the candles.

The three of us walked towards our usual spot, but Marly's feet stopped as she gasped. My eyes came up from the stone floor and went to where she was looking.

My breath caught in my throat.

There was a small bouquet of wild flowers sitting at my usual spot. They were so small, so delicate, yet they were so beautiful. I picked them up, almost worried they would break.

As I brought them up to my nose, a small folded piece of paper fell out of them onto the table. My stomach flipped over.

I opened the note slowly, and read the words over and over.

_I'm sorry._

It was only two words. It was only written on a piece of paper. But I could hear his voice in my head, reverberating through my ears. My ears began tingling again, but it wasn't from sadness this time.

A small bud fell on the note. I frowned at it. It couldn't have come from the bouquet; I was holding it in my hand.

Then I felt another one fall into my hair. Looking up, another one fell on my nose.

There were petals and flowers falling from the ceiling, almost like snow.

People let out excited shrieks, and "oohs" and "aahs" as they realized what was happening. But my attention wasn't on the flowers for very long.

I could feel him there. The hair on my skin stood up just sensing his presence.

Slowly turning to James, I took a deep breath as our eyes met. His hazel eyes held a hint of the hollow look from last night, but he had a small smile on his lips.

"The note, I-"

"I'm sorry too." I whispered, letting the bouquet rest on the table. A smile broke over my face, relief spilling through me.

He pulled me into his arms, pressing me into him. I breathed him in, my fingers knotting in his cloak. James laughed quietly, sounding extremely content.

"I love you, Lily." He held my face so gently, even as his eyes smoldered with intensity. He was almost shaking.

"I love you." I whispered, pressing my lips to his. The usual shivers erupted under my skin as he immediately deepened the kiss. Feeling him so close to me again felt right. The pit was gone; it was like it never existed.

I could feel people staring, but I didn't care. James' forehead met mine, and he kissed me once more.

"Care for some breakfast?"

My fingers weaved together with his as we sat down at the table, the small flowers still raining down on us.

"I'd love some."

***A/N: Happy Valentine's Day everybody! Thanks for reading!


	30. Concerts

It was a well known fact all around the Hogwarts campus that The Love Potions were making a stop in Hogsmeade during their tour around the magical cities of Europe.

It was also a well known fact that the professors were very aware of that, and had specifically made sure that the Hogsmeade visit had been postponed until the week after the band would be performing in the town square.

That concert was today, and an announcement had been made, forbidding students from attending, just for emphasis.

I had a problem with that. Coming from the muggle world, I was still a die hard fan of muggle bands, my poster of The Beatles in my dormitory a very obvious example of that. However, when I had first come to Hogwarts, The Love Potions had been the first magical band I'd heard. I'd immediately fallen in love with the song, and following that, the band. The thing is though, is I've never seen them live; and that chance had been thwarted by all of my teachers.

The professors tried to write it off, saying it was because NEWTS were just around the corner, creeping up on us faster that we thought, but I knew that they just didn't want to deal with all of the chaos that would be caused by allowing anyone to go to the concert.

But I _needed_ to go to that concert. That's all I could really think about as we sat in the common room as the sun went down, the minutes getting closer to when the concert would start. They were probably setting up now, with streets beginning to fill up with people. My imagination was torturing me.

A shift on the cushion beside me brought me back to the common room, and I glanced down at the boy next to me. James was half on, half off the couch, with his long legs hanging off of the arm and his head just leaning on my left leg. A smile curved on my lips when I noticed his glasses had slid down his nose a bit. Very gently, I pushed them back to their rightful place.

James mouth broke into a smirk, and he caught my hand before I could pull it away, lacing his fingers with mine and holding it against his warm chest. His heartbeat seemed to fill my own veins as it thumped wildly.

"I though you were asleep, you little bugger!" I laughed at him. He just wiggled his eyebrows at me in response, not even opening his eyes.

I let my free hand weave through his unruly hair, letting my fingers curl and uncurl his hair. He let out a content sigh, his thumb rubbing circles on the back of my hand.

"You know what we should do, James?"

"Elope?"

I snickered at his answer, even as my heart skipped a beat.

"No."

"Damn."

It made me laugh even harder to hear how truly disappointed he sounded.

"We should go to that concert tonight."

James' eyes shot open and an incredulous look formed on his features. He swung his legs around to sit up beside me as he let his free hand come up to feel my forehead.

"Are you feeling alright?"

I frowned at him. "Yes, I feel perfectly fine."

He brought his face a little closer to mine. "Because that was _you_ that just suggested we break the rules, right? You're not someone else with Polyjuice in their system?"

I slapped his shoulder as his smirk appeared. His eyes held that teasing gleam, but I could've sworn that I saw a hint of pride in them.

"It's not like I haven't broken the rules with you before!" I reminded him, pinching his taut stomach as his smirk broadened.

"This is true. But I roped you into all of those. This is all you." Now I was very sure that he was impressed with me.

"Maybe you're just rubbing off on me." I said with a shrug.

James caught my face and pressed his lips quickly, but tenderly to mine.

"I hope not too much. I love you the way you are." My heart sped up. He could always surprise me with words like that.

"And it would be weird to date myself." I think we frightened away some first years with our laughter.

"Well, if you're so opposed to going to the concert…" I finally got out after our laughing died out.

"Hey, now. I never said I was opposed to it. I was just pointing out the fact that it was _your_ idea."

I knew that he was going to come with me anyway, not only because he breaks the rules like it's his hobby, (which it sort of is, I guess), but also because he held a mutual love for the band as well.

In fact, a lot of people did, including Alice, Marly, even Remus and Sirius enjoyed their music. But we kept it to ourselves, sitting on the couch and laughing along with everyone else as if nothing had just happened between us.

James said it would be too suspicious if we skipped dinner, so with excitement vibrating every nerve in my body, I tried to keep dinner down as we ate with everyone else. James' hand slid into mine under the table and he squeezed it tightly just as people around us were starting to leave dinner in groups at a time, yawning and stretching after filling their bellies.

"Ready?" He whispered, his lips pressed right against my ear.

I shivered, hoping James didn't mistake it for fear, and nodded. As nerve wracking as breaking the rules was, the excitement of sneaking out with James again was overpowering.

We walked calmly along with the other groups, bidding a casual good-bye to our friends. But James turned us the opposite way as the giant doors that would lead to the front courtyards.

"Where are we going?" I whispered to him, even as my feet followed with no objection.

"Do you want everyone to know we're going out? There's another exit we can use."

I don't know how he and the Marauders had found all of these secret passage ways, but after we snuck behind a dark shadow of a statue and a took a quick trip down a passageway, we were poking our heads up through a floor panel.

"Where is this?"

"Honeyduke's basement." His smirk appeared yet again as he helped me out of the passage.

I returned his smile, as I was pressed right up against him, our hands still clasped together. I could feel his warm breath over my skin, and the tingling feeling in my stomach was on a rampage.

Then guitar strains echoed through the floor, and I froze in his arms.

My eyes widened as I gripped his hands, pulling him towards the steps. I could faintly hear him laughing behind me, but my ears were more focused on the song. The music grew louder and louder as our feet carried us through the streets of Hogsmeade until we broke into the square.

We were thrust into a crowd of people, but the hold I had on his hand kept him with me. I tried to maneuver us as close to the stage as I could, my ears pounding along with the drums.

And then the band was right there, practically within arm's length. I cried out, smiling back at James over my shoulder. His hazel eyes fixed on me, a smile curved onto his lips.

In the middle of one of the longer sets, I was pulled away from the stage and in the middle of a dancing group of wizards. They gave James and I a strange look as we slid past them, and I sent them an apologetic smile as we moved farther away, so we were sitting on one of the patios near the Three Broomsticks.

"We had a perfect spot!" I protested, but James spun me around and pointed. Following the direction of his finger, I found our very own Professor Dumbledore sitting contently in the spot we had just vacated.

"He would break his own rule, wouldn't he?" James smirked down in response.

"This is one of our oldies for guys," the lead singer announced, causing more erupting cheers from the gigantic crowd.

With only hearing the first few notes, I screamed along with everyone else. This was the first song I'd ever heard by them.

It was in my first year, and I'd been sitting in the corner of the common room, quietly studying Transfiguration, when one of the seventh years had suddenly turned the radio volume up beyond where it should have been, causing some static to sound beneath the lyrics.

The song was catchy, and it had actually made me look up from my parchment and tap my foot a little. Everyone seemed to know the song, all of them singing along to every word. I felt a little left out, because I had never heard any of these songs.

"C'mon, Evans!" I remember the eleven year old, messy haired, annoying little boy coming up to me, holding out his hand. I hadn't wanted to, but I had somehow found my books on the floor and my hands in his as we spun around the room. Strange looks from the upperclassmen came our way, but James had this carefree air about him that didn't let me feel embarrassed either.

Hearing the same song now, as a seventeen year old, I turned slowly to face the same messy haired boy.

"You remember this song?" James asked in a low tone, his eyes a little darker than they had been before.

I didn't answer him directly, just moved towards him, and let my arms wind around his neck. I started swaying a little, and he followed in suit. This time no one gave us odd looks, because many people were doing the same as us.

I wouldn't have cared anyway.

Nothing could really bother me now. With my favorite band playing my favorite song, and being here with James under the stars, was all I needed.


	31. Things That Lie Ahead

It suddenly felt like I was seeing the beautiful arches of the Great Hall for the first time. Realizing the ceiling was magic for the first time, watching the food appear on the plates for the first time.

But it wasn't the first time.

It was the last time.

With NEWTS done and trunks packed, all of us seventh years had been milling the hallways, realizing how much we'd taken for granted throughout the years. At least, that's what I was doing.

Of course, I knew I would be welcomed back to Hogwarts whenever I wanted to be, but I would never be back within its walls as a student. That chapter of my life was ending.

And here we all sat in the Great Hall, at the end of the year feast. For us, it was a feast for the end of our school careers.

So far, nearly every teacher had stood up and said their pieces, encouraging us on our bright futures. All that was left was Professor Dumbledore.

"As you all go forth, I will say, that I will miss every single one of you." He didn't sound the least bit choked up, but the sadness was apparent in his blue eyes.

His eyes had been filled with everything but sadness the other day, as Alice, Frank, Marlene, Sirius, Remus, Peter, James and I, and a select few others had huddled in his office. The Headmaster had told us about a group that was being formed to oppose the evil that was rising in our world. He made no mention about Ministry approval as he told us of his Order of the Phoenix. Through the whole meeting, I had kept peaking over at James, his hazel eyes determined beside me, his jaw set. I had very willingly signed my name up for the Order, my name right beside James'. But that didn't stop the fear from coursing through my veins. Leaving Hogwarts meant going into the world; the world that was falling apart all around us with the rise of Voldemort.

"I know that you must all move forward with your lives, as much as I wish you could all stay here. You must all move forward, and bring progress, _goodness_, to our future."

A chill was left in the Hall at Dumbledore's words. His message wasn't lost on the students, and some wary glances were shifted between the tables.

There was no time to worry on that however, as a great _boom_ shook the hall. I cast a knowing glance at James, but he only looked to the ceiling, reaching to take my hand in his.

Everyone had expected the prank of all pranks, the Marauder's exit, for a few days, but nothing had come. Now, brightly colored sparks flew about the room, exploding above each table in the colors of the houses: red, blue, green, and yellow. The sparks began depicting different scenes all over the room. One was first years entering the same hall we were sitting in now; another was Quidditch, the shining players chasing some students about the hall; the Hogwarts grounds, class, everything.

Leaning my head against James' shoulder, I smiled up at the images that had made up my time at Hogwarts.

"Who knew the four of you would be so sentimental." I whispered. James shook with laughter, a smirk threatening to cover his lips.

Another great _boom_ echoed as the sparks exploded, showering every student and teacher with the falling stars. Some students stood, jumping up on the benches and reaching for the sparkles.

"That was impressive. The last Marauders' prank is a harmless one. I'm proud of you. " I nudged James, and he shot me a look, his hand sneaking up to the back of my head.

"Then you shouldn't look over at the Slytherin table."

James captured my lips with his, keeping my head close to his. Though, I caught a glimpse of green slime covering the Slytherin table instead of green sparks, and snorted a laugh into the kiss.

Dumbledore tried to calm the students, but the Great Hall was practically in a riot now. James pointed my attention to the head table, laughing loudly into my ear. I didn't see what he was indicating, until there was a muffled shriek from Professor McGonagall. Sirius had snuck up behind her, landing quite a slobbery kiss right on her cheek. He whispered something in her ear before leaping over the table and making a run for it. McGonagall's face reddened in anger for a moment, but instead of reprimanding the boy, she only shook her head. I thought I caught a hint of a smile on her lips, but it was gone before I could really be sure.

This is exactly how I wanted to remember Hogwarts. Laughter all around me, the carefree atmosphere, and the feel of James' hand in mine. That's all I needed to go forward.

Tomorrow, I would get on the Hogwarts Express for the last time, and watch the castle spires leave my vision for the last time. In a few weeks, I would be attending the first meeting of the Order of the Phoenix. I would be in the real world, facing everything.

Beside me, James was all smiles and laughter. I'd seen that determined look the other day, his face etched with seriousness. But today, even while faced with having to go ahead in a life that would be filled with danger, he still kept that grin on his face.

I felt like I could do anything with him beside me. That had been part of the reason I had signed my name on the list for the Order. I knew that if James was there with me, I could accomplish any task set before me.

He sent me a confused look as I brought his head down to mine again, pressing my lips hard against his.

It was a new chapter of my life, but as long as James was here with me, I knew I could step forward, filled with the Gryffindor courage I was said to have since my first day at Hogwarts.

A/N: I know it's a pretty short one; it was more of a transition chapter. There's much more coming outside of Hogwarts! We're getting close to the end guys…


	32. Cooking For A Loved OneMeet the Family

The chimes of the large grandfather clock at the end of the hall rang out three o'clock. It was already mid-afternoon and I had barely moved from my spot, lying on the rug in my room.

"Only two more days," I mumbled.

"Two more days till what?"

My vision became fuzzy with how fast I sat up, but once the blurs were gone, the pinched, slightly sunburned face of my sister filled my doorway. A sharp streak of panic ran through me.

"Nothing! I didn't say anything!" My laugh sounded too nervous to be casual.

Petunia narrowed her eyes at me, but said nothing as she made her way down the stairs.

I let a sigh of relief puff out of my lungs. The truth was I had specifically not told my sister what was going on in two days. Because in two days, James was coming over to meet my parents.

We had planned out the 'parent meetings' a few weeks ago, when school had ended. But there was no way I was going to let Petunia be present when my parents met James.

"Why not? I mean, this is James Potter we're talking about here. He can take on your sister." Alice had said when I'd visited her a few days ago.

"That's not the problem, Alice. James is not the problem. I am. I know that Petunia is going to go after him, trying to make him look bad to my parents. All to get at me. I don't want James to be caught up in the middle of that." I had groaned as I flopped onto Alice's couch.

"Lily, James knows what he's doing. Merlin knows you've talked to him enough about Petunia. And even if you and your sister don't get along, you know James will still want to meet her. She's still your family." I knew that Alice was right, but I was still going to do everything in my power to keep my sister out of this visit.

It was already going to be stressful; I know, because I'd been home from Hogwarts when Petunia had brought her boyfriend, Vernon, home. He was a boring sort of boy, and pretty pudgy to say the least. The problem was my parents had thought Vernon was a good boy, a good type for dating.

I didn't much care if my parents "approved" of James or not; I love him. There's nothing they can really do about that. But of course I _want _them to like him.

"Lily! Come down here please!" My mother's voice echoed up the stairs. Mustering up enough energy, I slipped down the stairs and into the kitchen.

"So I hear there is a 'James' coming over in two days." Petunia looked smug from across the kitchen.

_Shit,_ I felt my fingers clench.

"Yeah, but I thought you were going to Vernon's summer house that day." I tried to unclench my teeth, but they weren't budging.

"Well it turns out that Vernon's father has a meeting that day, so he and Petunia will actually be joining us for dinner! Isn't that fantastic!" My mother smiled at me from the table, where she sat across from my father.

No. No, Mum. That isn't fantastic. That is a disaster. "How nice." My voice sounded as if poison had just been dripped down my throat.

"Now, we need to decide what you're going to make." My mother changed the subject as if Petunia and Vernon coming to the dinner with James was not a big deal at all.

"What?"

"Oh, Lily," Petunia tittered, coming forward. "You have to make the dinner. It's tradition. Mum made dinner for Dad when he came to her house. I made dinner for Vernon. What will you make for this James?"

I really hated how she said his name. It made me want to shout at her.

"I don't know…"

"How does chicken Alfredo sound? Do you think your James will like that?"

"Sure," I answered offhandedly, not really paying attention to what my mother was saying.

It's funny how when I was looking forward to the dinner with James, the days seemed to drag on and on, lasting forever. But now that I dreaded the day, it had come in no time.

Pulling my sheets closer around myself, I hoped for a moment that if I just didn't get out of bed, the day wouldn't happen. James wouldn't have to suffer through my sister.

"Wake up! We need to make the house presentable for your man!" Petunia gushed, pulling my blinds up to let the sun in. I didn't give her the satisfaction of an answer, only responding with a glare that probably didn't look as menacing as I thought it would as I squinted from the sudden light.

For the past two days, I had tried my best to make it so Petunia would not be present for dinner. I had wandered into her work yesterday, asking them if they needed any help and that Petunia would be more than glad to help. Turns out they were over-staffed. I'd called the neighbor girls, asking them to take their old friend Petunia out shopping for the day. I guess they all held the same opinion of my sister that I did. _Great._

Slipping on a sun dress, I appraised myself in the mirror. Taking a few deep breaths, I kept repeating the same thing over and over in my head. _James will be here. James will be here._

No cleaning really had to be done; my mother would always go crazy over making the house look nice when company was coming.

"I bought all of the ingredients for you, Lily. Oh, did I sweep the porch?"

"Yes dear, you swept the porch." My father winked at me as he passed, kissing my mother on the cheek.

_James will be here._

"We should do something else with your hair," my mother fluffed my hair that was just hanging around my face.

"Mum, it's fine. I don't really-" By my mother was having none of it. She pulled me towards the stairs, going on about ribbons and curlers.

The moment I was pushed into the bathroom, the doorbell rang through the house. Wrestling away from my mother, I shot for the stairs again. Despite the disaster that was waiting for us, a smile grew on my face.

Wrenching the door open, I came face to face not with the smiling hazel eyes behind glasses, topped with a mop of black hair, but with the bloated face of Vernon Dursley.

"Oh," I probably would have been smacked if my mother had heard the obvious disgust in my voice.

"Good afternoon, Lily." He wheezed, pushing past me into the foyer. I wrinkled my nose after him, not unlike a child would have.

"Lily, you should go prepare the ingredients for dinner." Petunia hissed behind Vernon's back as they made their way to the sitting room. I may or may not have stuck my tongue out at her retreating form as I made my way to the kitchen. I will never admit to it though.

I had just brought the chicken out to thaw after looking through the recipe, a little more than miffed that I had to be cooking a meal while my sister had time to pounce on James.

The doorbell rang again.

I heard something fall to the floor behind me, but I didn't wait to see what it was as I sprinted for the hallway.

"I'll get it!" I shouted, but I was too late. Petunia swung the door open, her lips pinched as she greeted James.

James nodded towards her, but his eyes found me almost immediately.

Relief washed through me just at the sight of James standing there. I wanted to move forward, shove my sister to the side and throw my arms around him, but my feet were rooted to the spot. It didn't matter, the moment James caught my eye, he made a direct path to me, completely disregarding my sister to my small guilty delight.

"Ah! This must be James! How nice to finally meet you!" My mother swooned, coming forward to kiss his cheek.

"It's good to meet you too, Mrs. Evans. Mr. Evans." James nodded to my father, making his glasses slide down his nose a little.

My sister coughed, bumping James' shoulder as she passed. I could barely suppress my glare. "This is my sister, Petunia." It was amazing that it didn't come out as a growl.

Petunia smiled with pursed lips, which I don't understand how that is possible, but my sister can accomplish it. Well, at least she's got one talent.

"And this is Vernon." She breathed his name, stroking the back of his hair.

"Hello." James nodded to the man, who did not hide his eye roll.

We were ushered into the sitting room, when my sister and Vernon came up behind James and I, not even trying to be quiet.

"Goodness, Petunia. He dares come here like that?"

"I know. Did you see his hair? He looks positively unkempt."

I was ready to round on my sister, but I felt James slip his hand into mine, shooting shivers up my spine. I squeezed his hand tightly, trying to show an apology, but he still held a grin. He ran his other hand through his hair like he always did, shaking it, as if to show my sister that nothing helped. I couldn't help my grin.

There was a lot of idle talk, my parents asking the usual questions of James. "What's your family like?" "Where are you from?" "What are your thoughts on the new Prime Minister?" (I had to help James out a little with that one, as he wasn't too keen on Muggle politics.) "Do you have any plans for the summer?" "Do you have any plans for the future?"

I tensed up at the last question. Yes, James did have plans for the future. _We_ had plans for the future. And I hadn't exactly told my parents about the Order of the Phoenix. I probably never would; it would cause unneeded fear, and they would probably lock me up if they knew I was planning on fighting with this group. And James and I had spoken a little on the future…

But James answered it smoothly, barely hesitating. "It's a little strange being out of school. All I really know is that Lily will be in that future."

The smile grew on my lips of its own accord, and James' thumb ran a path along the back of my hand.

Petunia made a disgusting coughing noise to cover up her snicker. I would have strangled her, but it wasn't worth it. She and Vernon had been sickening when she had introduced him to the family. They'd been melting all over each other like they were one blob. She was only acting this way because she was jealous. And that was not me being full of myself, she'd as much told me herself on multiple occasions. _"Mummy and Daddy's little perfect girl." _She'd always snarl.

"Lily, you should probably go and start supper if we want to eat at a reasonable time." My mother advised. I stood up, not removing my hand from James'. He stood with me as if to follow, glancing around the sitting room in a confused manner.

"Oh, James! Why don't you stay? Lily can handle herself in the kitchen just fine." My sister gushed, standing to come take his arm.

I felt the panic fill me again as I hesitantly released my grip on his hand. Petunia was asking for it. James sent me a reassuring smile over his shoulder, winking.

I kept the sight of that smile in my head as I swept around to the kitchen preparing dinner. It didn't take long: the noodles were already boiled and draining in the sink, the chicken keeping warm in the pan, the salad tossed; there was only the Alfredo sauce left.

"How's it coming?" His voice whispered in my ear, lips connecting with my skin. I turned from the sauce, meeting those hazel eyes.

"Fine. What are you doing in here? I thought my sister was holding you captive?" I teased, my arms making their way around his waist. I noticed his hair had grown longer; now it fell down over the tops of his ears.

"She very quickly directed the attention to her guy in there. So I made my escape. They think I'm in the bathroom right now. Shh." He held a finger up to his lips, a smile filled with mischief behind it.

I laid my head on his shoulder, holding him tight.

"I'm sorry about her." I felt my brows crease slightly.

"Sorry for what?" James' hand absentmindedly rubbed a track up and down my back, calming me.

"She's terrible." My voice came muffled by his shirt. It was a very nice shirt. I'd have to come up with a plan to get him to wear it more often.

James' shrug shook me a little bit. "She's not that bad," I knew he was just being nice. He didn't have to be, but I appreciated it. "Besides, it's not her I'm worried about." I could hear the smile in his voice as he pressed his lips into my hair.

"I missed you." I admitted, hugging him tightly.

"I missed-your sauce."

Pulling my head back, I raised an eyebrow at him. "You missed my sauce?"

"No! Your sauce!" He pointed, turning me around.

The pot on the stove was now being overflowed by a creamy waterfall. A scream escaped my throat as I lunged for the burner, shutting it off violently and quickly. Apparently not quick enough, for some sauce had dribbled onto my fingers.

"Ow!" I hissed, shaking my hand. "It's ruined." Even Petunia hadn't messed up her dinner that she'd made for Vernon. I would have to be the one to ruin it. I wouldn't live this down in my sister's eyes.

James grabbed my hand, bringing it close to him.

"I'm sorry, James. This dinner was supposed to be-Oh."

The tip of my finger brushed James' lip as he licked the sauce lightly. His eyes had darkened, and I was pressed against the edge of the counter. Heat slowly coursed through me, making my breathing too heavy.

"Nope. Not ruined at all." His voice rumbled in his chest, transferring trembles into me. I tipped my head towards his, crashing our lips together.

"What happened? I heard Lily scream!" My mother came in. James pushed off of me as fast as lightning, coming to rest beside me as if we were doing nothing at all.

"The sauce was boiling over." My words were so rushed.

"Lily thought it was ruined." So were James'.

"But it's fine."

"Just fine."

I could still feel the heat rolling off of him, and there was too much laced underneath our words that I shivered involuntarily.

"Oh." I couldn't tell what my mother was thinking, but I caught a small smile on her lips before it disappeared. "Well, why don't you two just call us all in when you're done?" I didn't want to believe it, but I thought my mother wiggled her eyebrows at me.

_Merlin, Mum!_ I thought, feeling a blush rise in my cheeks. James chuckled beside me, a hand coming up to cover his mouth so he wouldn't actually start laughing for everyone in the other room to hear.

I smacked him in the arm, even as some giggles escaped from me.

James helped me with the rest of dinner, cutting up the vegetables for the salad as I mixed together the noodle, chicken, and sauce.

"Have you told them yet?"

Turning to look at him, I had to stop a moment. He was leaning on the other side of the counter, towards me. His glasses had slid down again, and his eyes sparkled in the sunlight coming through the window. Whether on purpose, or accidentally, the top button of his shirt had come undone, offering more skin for my eyes to rake over. Who knows, maybe I'd been the one to undo it earlier. This man was mine. I couldn't fathom that, and the butterflies in my stomach had multiplied to hundreds, flitting all around.

"Told them what?"

His smile told me he'd noticed my appraisal from before.

"That we are moving in together?"

A/N: HA! A long chapter, with a nice ending. I hope you liked it all! More updates to come very soon!


	33. Buying Furniture

The truth was I hadn't told my parents. I didn't know how to bring it up to them.

"_Sure, I'll do the dishes. Oh, by the way Mum and Dad, I'm moving in with my boyfriend."_

"_I'll probably be home late Mum. And speaking of leaving the house, I'm going to be moving in with James within the next week."_

I'd learned from Alice and Marly that it was actually considered normal for students of Hogwarts to move in with friends or significant others after graduation. Living apart from family at seventeen happened all the time apparently in the wizarding world.

So many emotions ran through me: excitement, nervousness, happiness. James had been the one to bring it up, and I had kissed him full on the lips after his suggestion.

"_I'll take that as a yes then?" _I could still see his self-satisfied smirk from that night.

However, moving in with one's boyfriend at seventeen wasn't exactly smiled upon in the muggle world. My parents were the perfect example: they'd moved in together when they were both twenty-four. There was no way in hell they would allow this to happen.

So behind my parent's back, I'd gone with James to pick out a flat. We'd already divvyed up what each of us was bringing with us, and were planning on shopping for the rest of the furniture on Friday, the day we were moving in.

Tuesday afternoon, I was sitting in the kitchen, immersed in a novel, when my mother came in from the backdoor, her arms overflowing with grocery bags. I rushed forward, grabbing a loaf of bread before it hit the floor.

"Thanks sweetie." She gasped, letting the groceries spill onto the counter. She immediately busied herself again, beginning to put all of the food away. One thing about my mother is she always had to be doing something, even if it was tedious. She couldn't sit still. I'd been hoping for this. If she was distracted when I told her the news, maybe she wouldn't throttle me.

"So…you liked James?" I cleared my throat, slowly sitting back into my chair, nervously fluttering the pages of my book.

"He was wonderful, Lily; very respectful."

_That's a start._

"Well, I'm in love with him, Mum."

My mother laughed a bit, picking up an eggplant. "Oh, I could see that. I think he's rather in love with you too."

Even with the anxious feeling fluttering inside me, a smile broke my lips at that.

"So you like him."

"I just told you that. Yes, I liked him dear. I think you two fit very well together."

I wanted to tell my mother I had thought the same thing, but I couldn't risk getting off topic. If I didn't tell her now, I would have to tell her when Dad got home. At least I still had time to bring my mother over to my side of the argument that was bound to happen.

"That's good. It's great, actually. Because…well…we're moving in together. On Friday."

There was a bout of silence, the only sound being the refrigerator and cabinets opening and closing as she kept putting away food. My eyes followed her around the room, my teeth worrying my bottom lip terribly.

She folded the bag, clutching it in her fingers. When she finally looked up at me again, there were some tears shining in her eyes.

"I thought that was coming soon." Was all she said. I moved forward from the table, throwing my arms around her. She held me close, like she hadn't done since I had been eleven years old, getting ready to go onto the platform for the first time.

She had indeed taken my side about moving in. Actually, she'd been surprisingly supportive. It wasn't needed, however. When my father had pulled into the driveway, my mother had marched us right out to meet him. Another surprising reaction, all my dad did was turn a little green in the cheeks, his papers almost slipping out of his arms. In time though, with enough explaining more from my mother than from me how ready I was for this, the green tinge disappeared.

My mother insisted we go out to dinner the day of the big move and have a proper goodbye. I tired to explain that James expected me earlier, but she was having none of it. Petunia had looked sour through the whole meal. I'd already lived away from home for long enough at Hogwarts that I couldn't bring myself to join in with my mother's tears as we hugged goodbye behind the house.

James had told me the flat would be available for the move in at three in the afternoon, but I didn't make it there until six in the evening. It was a shock I didn't lose half of my luggage as I apparated, but it worked, even if I stumbled forward at my landing. It was a good thing there was nothing to fall over, for the entrance way was empty except for another pile of bags

"It's about time." I dropped my suitcases, whirling around in my spot. Apparently, my legs were still wobbly from apparating, because they spun too far, carrying the upper half of my body with them to the floor.

James rushed forward, gripping my shoulders as he pulled me out of my fall and into a hug.

"Hey roomie." I whispered, wrapping my arms around his waist. His lips pressed against my hair. Even though we'd seen each other only about a week ago, it felt like it had been a year. I could never get enough of him.

He pulled me into the main room of the flat, his hand the familiar rough, warm one that seemed to have been made for mine to fit in. The sun was shining through our windows as it set, and I had to hold a hand up to it so I could see. There were nice windows, but it was more of a thrill to call them _our _windows. Our walls were painted a sunny yellow, making the whole place look bright. The couch James had brought was stretched out in the main room, and I had brought us a coffee table that was my old bedside table. We had mismatched chairs, but no table and no shelves. The kitchen already came with appliances at least. Down the hallway opposite from the kitchen was a cramped bathroom, and a small bedroom that could barely be called the "master" bedroom. It may have been empty and a little bit small, but it was filled with comfort. It was perfect.

"We need some more things, don't we?" I commented, my voice seeming to emphasize the emptiness by echoing back to us from the walls.

James shrugged, moving to grab his own suitcases. "We can do that tomorrow, can't we?" His brow was furrowed in the cute way it did when he was tired.

"We could, but unless both of us are supposed to sleep on the couch, we're going to need a bed." As nice as his couch was, I wasn't too keen on spending the night on it and waking up with stiff muscles all over.

"We could both fit on the couch." He commented, hoisting his bags over his shoulder.

"You told me it wasn't a fold out couch!" Fingers tickled my side, pinching the skin of my waist as James passed me, sauntering towards the bedroom to drop his bags in there.

"It's not." He winked over his shoulder. My eyes rolled, even as tingles spread under my skin.

It took a lot of tugging on his stubborn arm, and pulling up from the couch, but we finally made it out of the flat. Since the furniture outlet was in a muggle neighborhood, we couldn't apparate. So marching down the stairs, hand in hand, James and I made our way down the street. The walk wasn't that long, and it helped us to see more of the small neighborhood we were living in.

Walking through the doors of the store was a different world entirely though. There were lounge chairs that would match our main room, side tables that matched the couch, bookshelves, lamps, desks, every piece of furniture that could be imagined. James and I must have looked like little kids, with our jaws hanging down to the floor. Now I understood why my mother had always gotten so excited about furniture shopping. In a place as big as this, how could one not?

It was hard to walk by all of the furnished wood, but we'd come for a bed, and that's what we were going to get. The sleeping section was at the very back of the store, and when we finally arrived at the rear through the maze of furniture, getting awfully distracted on the way, we were met by a very enthusiastic saleswoman.

"Hello! What will you two be looking for today?"

James glanced at the large sign directly above her that read 'Clearance! Beds! Beds! Beds!', and answered dryly, "Er, a bed perhaps?"

I elbowed him, snorting lightly.

"Well, you're in luck! We still have quite a few! Come and follow me!"

I didn't hear anything the lady said after that. She showed us many beds, prattling on about the features and prices, but my ears had closed. It had finally hit me, what we were doing. My nerves were on edge, and the hand that James still held felt like it was on fire. It was a strange experience, looking at all of these beds with James, as if it was an everyday occurrence. Sure, I'd slept in James' bed at Hogwarts before, but that had been _his_ bed.The one we were looking for would be _our_ bed, which was in a whole other category than _our_ windows, or _our_ flat. This was much bigger, much more personal. I loved the sound of it in my head, but it was sending nervous tingles down to my toes.

"What do you think of this one?" The saleswoman asked eagerly, indicating the bed in front of us. It wasn't the largest bed, but it would fit two perfectly, if even a little snugly. The saleswoman must have noticed how young we were as well, for it was relatively cheap.

"It's nice." My voice was quiet, only James heard me.

"It is." He agreed, speaking mostly to me.

"I'll leave you to think on it a moment. I'll be with you again after I help this fine couple over here." She floated away, greeting the other couple in much of the same manner as she had us.

James moved towards the bed, pulling his hand away as he plopped down on the mattress.

"It's sturdy." He said.

"What's that supposed to mean?" I asked, pressing on the mattress with my hand to feel the cushioning. It seemed comfortable.

"I think you know exactly what it's supposed to mean."

I could feel a blush cover my cheeks. James had made jokes about _that_ before, but he'd never been so straightforward. Yet again, here we were, buying a bed together.

His gaze was heavy on me, his eyes significantly darker than they'd been a moment ago. I had no doubt of mine darkening as well, which was always paired with the twisty feeling in my stomach. It always did that whenever James gave me that look.

"So will you be taking this one?" The saleswoman was back, her big smile breaking into my thoughts that James had stuck in my head. It was almost a relief. If my mind kept along that line, I would be put in quite the dangerous situation.

"Yeah," he answered, standing up from the bed beside me again. His smirk held a lot more mischief than usual. A lot more.

"It's nice and sturdy." I don't know what came over me, but I said it, a matching smirk on my mouth.

James couldn't keep a straight face. A bark of laughter broke through his lips and his hand slid into mine again, squeezing my fingers.

The saleswoman didn't seem to notice our joke, even as we stood before her, practically convulsing in silent laughter.

"We can ship that to you as soon as we can! Free of charge! It should take about twenty-four hours." We had to sign a shipping contract, and we somehow wound up with a kitchen table before we were ushered out by the saleswoman.

The sun had set a few hours ago, leaving us in the night life of London. Cars sped down the road beside us, just as people swarmed around us. For some reason, there seemed to be more people out and about now than there had been earlier this evening. The street lights shone down on us, blocking out the twinkling stars above our heads.

"So we'll end up sleeping on that couch for a night anyway." I commented, leaning my head on James' shoulder as we walked.

He laughed suddenly, a hand snaking around my waist and pulling me in close. His lips came close to my ear, his warm breath brushing my neck, causing a blush to cover the skin there. "Well let's hope that it's as sturdy as our new bed, for the couch's sake."

I couldn't be sure what the other pedestrians must have thought of the two of us, but we earned ourselves some strange glances, tripping and stumbling down the streets as we cackled, the word "sturdy" breaking through our lips too often, causing more waves of laughter to come.

A/N: So school has started yet again. This chapter is a special case on a Thursday, but for the rest of the year, I will do my best to update this story every Saturday! Thanks for reading all!


	34. Small Touches

It was apparent that we had forgotten to close the blinds.

When we'd gotten in the night before, our flat had already been dark, and James had stumbled, pulling me with him towards the couch. We hadn't even shed out of our clothes from the night before.

Now, with the sun shining through the glass and onto the two of us, I realized it would have been worth the extra movement to close the blinds, as the sun had woken me up far too early. Blinking rapidly, I tilted my head up to our windows, glaring at the sun. That's all I could move, for James and I were wrapped together in knots trying to fit on the small couch. Just with a glance though, I couldn't bring myself to glare anymore. The light problem was our fault; we didn't even own blinds yet.

"Damn," My voice was still rather groggy. Pointing my toes in a makeshift stretch so not to wake James, I snuggled deeper in his embrace. The morning sun did wonders, making it seem as if his skin was glowing. I smirked at his sleeping face, which was still covered by his glasses. I pulled them off the best I could, with my arms being limited in their motion as they were stuck between us.

I held his folded glasses in one hand, while the other traced the contours of his face; the bend of his nose, the subtle curve of his lips, his soft cheek, and his eyelashes over the thin, sensitive skin of his eyes.

His eyebrows bent at an angle for a moment as he moved against me, pulling us deeper into the couch. I finally snuck a complete arm out from our knot to drag the fleece blanket up and over us again, pushing my nose into the crook of his neck, inhaling his scent.

James was waking up now. His hands strayed to my waist, his fingers brushing the skin of my back. Now, it wasn't the sun that was making my own skin feel like it was on fire. A low groan rumbled low in his throat as his hand traversed even further up my back. Stretching again, I arched into him, entirely on purpose, making a knowing smile form on his lips. His nails lightly scratched my skin.

Paired with the sunlight and James, I was in a cloud of glorious heat. I brought my hand up again, running my fingers over his collarbone, up the line of his jaw, along his throat, over the small bump that was his Adam's apple. His lungs filled and emptied along with mine, our breath mixing together between us.

James pulled one hand from my back, letting it dance along my bare arm. He had yet to open those hazel eyes of his. He was probably steeling them against the bright light entering our window, but I wanted to see them. I watched him carefully as my fingers felt their way along the side of his neck, up to the small spot at the back of his head, at the crown of his hairline. The corner of his mouth slid up. In a sudden movement, I pinched his taut stomach. Instead of opening his eyes, he scrunched them tighter as he bent forward, his face coming in close to mine. He responded with a pinch to my side. James took advantage of my squirming, and pulled me on top of him as he slid between me and the couch cushions.

"Cheater," I whispered. My voice hadn't improved from its sleeping state yet.

"Who are you calling cheater, you pinched me first." His voice wasn't faring any better either, but it sounded much more attractive coming from him, with a rasp overlapping his usual low voice.

My index finger brushed his bottom lip, tracing along the edges of his mouth, even though I knew them by heart. The smile I conjured from my touch was lazy. His large, warm hands came to rest on my waist again, holding me against him, inch for inch.

_I get to wake up like this for the rest of my life._ The thought made my heart swell inside me, and I finally brought my hand down to rest over James' fluttering heart.

He rested a hand over my hand on his chest, his eyes finally opening to catch my gaze, holding it with ease. A ghost of a smirk came again. Not his mischievous Marauder smirk, but the one he saved just for me, when we were in the confines of our own privacy. He brought a hand to rest over my heart, pulling the neck of my shirt down slightly so his hand remained in contact with skin. The sun was higher now, but I didn't care to notice. Keeping my hand where it was, I nuzzled my head under his chin again, curling up over him. His hand remained as well, while his other rubbed slow circles on my back, the calloused tips of his fingers catching the cloth of my shirt once in awhile.

On a morning like this, our first morning in our apartment, this was all we needed.


	35. Old Memories

"I think they really liked you." James commented as we exited the front door of his childhood home. It had been almost surreal for me to walk between the walls he had grown up in, seeing his poster-covered bedroom, his bed that was far too small for him to fit on anymore. I'd never before seen pictures of him younger than eleven, and it made my heart warm as if it lay out in the sun to see the moving photographs of such a little, baby James. Today, I'd finally gotten to meet his parents. I hadn't known what to expect, but the Potters were lovely people. James' mother had immediately pulled me into a hug. "I've been wondering when we were going to finally meet you! James always speaks of you."

"Fondly, I hope." Mrs. Potter had laughed, and I had snuck a look at James, who ran a nervous hand through his hair. She didn't look much like her son, with her hair shining a light brown in the sunlight, but I could see exactly where he had gotten those mesmerizing eyes from. Mr. Potter on the other hand, had provided many other physical features for James. He was a handsome man, with hair just as jet black, though he seemed to be able to tame it a little better than his son. They had welcomed me into their home as if I belonged there, beginning to joke and prod at each other the whole day. To say the least, this meeting had gone much smoother and been much more enjoyable than the meeting with my family had.

I swung our clasped hands between us, squinting up towards the afternoon sun.

"Really?" I asked playfully, nudging him as we walked. He nodded, and tried to land a kiss on my cheek; my dodging him just made it land on my ear.

I shot a glance in his direction, catching the grin that had been on his lips throughout the whole meal. He had acted much like the young boy in all of the photographs in his excitement. Apparently he'd wanted me to meet his parents for quite some time. It had been all he talked about this morning as we both got ready. He had also blushed like a little boy when his parents had relayed story after story of a younger James. Apparently, he'd always had a flare for trouble. We'd laughed for hours, with James attempting to justify himself, even as he tried to suppress his own laughter.

Still swinging our hands, I let my eyes wander around James' old neighborhood. We would have to walk a while, as some muggles were living on the block as well, before we could apparate back to our flat, but I didn't mind. The sun was shining enormously bright down on the walkway in front of us, the clouds barely moving for the lack of a breeze. A different kind of smile slid onto my face as I pointed up at the stationary puffs.

"That cloud looks like a quill."

James lifted his chin to see where I was pointing. His grin turned to that of knowing, his eyes shining just like they had been that day back on the grounds of Hogwarts. His arm crossed over me as he pointed to the other side of the sky.

"That one looks like a frog."

"Someone's imagination has improved."

It was his turn to nudge me, but my smile only grew larger. It was almost starting to pain my cheeks.

"That's a cactus."

"A Bertie-Botts bean!"

"Oh! That's a guitar!"

"No it's not! That's a spoon!"

I barked out a laugh at how indignant he sounded, like there was a right or wrong answer.

"Well, that one looks like you!" I rebuffed.

He looked incredulously at the said cloud. "How does that look like me?"

Laughter bubbled up again. "Look, it's got your glasses! Even the messy hair on top!" I ruffled his ebony hair, and his grin broke through again.

In a movement so swift, I didn't even see it coming; he came up and grabbed my wrist, whirling me around until my back was against his chest, his arms encircling my waist. The blush that painted my cheeks would have been much darker, except for the fact that there were not many people out at this time.

"You know," his voice sounded in my ear, always so deep. "You're right. The glasses, the hair…and it kind of looks like I've got myself a suit on."

Now he was just being funny. I rolled my eyes, but they caught on his fingertip, which was pointing up at the blue blanket above us again. "That one looks like you." His whisper came quieter, to the point where I was straining to hear him.

"See? The long hair, the eyes…you've got all white on. A dress. You're beautiful."

"The dress is white because of the clouds." I giggled, my fingers drawing pictures all over James' arms.

I didn't need to turn around to know he was smiling. His lips pressed against the side of my neck. "The dress could look like clouds if that's what you want."

Leaning back against him, I breathed in deeply, the familiar scent of James mixing with the smells of flowers, grass, and baking foods coming from the open windows of the surrounding houses.

"We look pretty good, don't we?" I whispered back to him, even though the fuzzy blobs in the sky didn't look much like us at all.

"We do."

I turned to him, and froze in my motion, halfway facing him in his arms, my hands clutching tightly to his forearm.

In front of me, stuck between James' pointer finger and thumb, was a simple gold band, with small pearl embedded in it. It was so simple; it was perfect. It was beautiful.

Warmth flooded my veins, as well as my cheeks as I finally realized the moment he was hinting at. James in a suit, my dress as white as clouds. This striking ring right in front of me.

"Marry me, Lily?" His voice sounded nervous as it reverberated off of every nerve in my body before actually registering in my brain. What in the world could he be nervous for? He must have known my answer long ago. Even if he hadn't, it was probably etched all over my face now. I could feel the smile filling my lips, even as fat tears pooled in my eyes.

"Yes," It came out as a small whisper, not much louder than his question. "Yes!" Now a shout. I couldn't seem to stop saying it. "Yes, yes James. I'll marry you. Yes!"

My arms had somehow found their way around his neck, and he swung me up close to him, twirling us on the street. There were more people than there had been before, but I couldn't bring myself to notice them. They didn't exist, not in this moment. Not in the moment that belonged to James and me alone. Explosions were erupting inside of me and my glee was exiting out by way of laughter, unintelligible words, squeaks and squeals.

James had managed to slip the ring on my left hand, even with his hand shaking in joy, relief, bliss. It sparkled in the sunlight, and it fit just right. He landed a kiss on my lips, bringing my hands close towards his heart.

Others passed us just as the clouds did: lazy and refusing to notice the haze of happiness and perfection that swirled around James and me. We could have been in our own flat for all it mattered. James held me in his arms, showering kisses all over the skin he could reach. I returned them when I could, but I was still too dazed to move at any sort of quick pace.

"You know, that cloud does look a lot like us." I laughed as I pointed at the misshapen white splotch in the sky. James only pressed his lips to mine again, even as we both shook; with laughter, with anticipation, with pure exhilaration.


	36. Pet Names

Once Alice had gotten wind the proposal, she had taken it upon herself to plan a party for us. James and I had not asked for one, but she had planned one. Nothing else had been spoken of for weeks.

"Do we really have to go?" James moaned, shoving his face back into the pillow that had come with our new bed a few weeks ago.

I zipped my dress the best I could, and slapped James' shoulder under the covers. "You know that Alice has been so excited for this. And she's been planning every single detail ever since this thing." I smiled, wiggling my fingers in his face. He caught my hand, pulling me closer to the bed, brushing his lips along the finger that held the ring he'd given me.

"Come on, get dressed." Ruffling his hair, I pulled my hand away and padded out to the main room, searching for our Floo Powder.

James came out not long after, pulling on his shirt as he let out a wide yawn. His hands came to my back, finishing the zipper on my dress, and he fell over me, still exhausted.

"Is this what it's going to be like now that we're adults? Lunch and dinner parties?" He whined, hugging me tightly to him.

"Not that you're necessarily an adult," I teased. He shook with laughter, and stood up with his arms still around me, as I'd finally pulled our jar of Floo Powder from the cabinet beside the fireplace. "But I don't know. It won't be that bad, we get to see our friends more often at least."

Alice and Frank actually didn't live very far from the flat James and I had recently purchased, and we saw everyone often enough at Order meetings, but it wasn't the same as being in class with them, living in the same castle as them everyday.

"I'll go first. Button your shirt, Mister." I poked him in the strip of still bare chest, ducking my head to be fully in the fireplace.

I much more preferred apparating to using the Floo Network, but Alice and Frank had wards up against apparition on their apartment. So even though I had just fixed my hair and cleaned up for the day, I stumbled out of Frank and Alice's fireplace, cheeks smudged from ash and my red locks frizzing at the ends again.

"Lily!" Alice's screech filled the room, and I got thrown back almost to my own flat by how hard she hugged me. "Let me see it, let me see it!" She groped for my left hand, nearly tugging my arm off.

Frank entered the room, looking lost as he held a plate of spinach rolls that Alice must have thrust into his hands once she heard my arrival.

Alice was still gushing about the ring when James tripped out of the fireplace, knocking into me.

"Good taste, James." Alice waggled her eyebrows at him. James only laughed, a hand finding its way through his hair as his cheeks tinged pink.

"Do I hear who I think I hear?" Sirius came from the kitchen, his mouth full of some snack or another, his arms outstretched to the man behind me. "Prongsie!" The boys embraced, Sirius pretending to break into tears. "You know I'm extremely jealous, Red." He mock glared, pulling me into the big hug as well.

"Frankiekins, will you go set these on the table?" Alice asked. Frank looked relieved to finally be rid of the platter in his hands.

"Sure thing, Ali-cat."

Marly came from my side, making a fake gagging noise as she hugged me. "Merlin, they call each other that all the time. I feel like throwing myself out the window." Classic Marlene. At least leaving Hogwarts hadn't changed anyone that much.

James and I were pulled away from each other early on. There may have not been many people there, but somehow I didn't catch sight of him. I was stuck on my own, showing the ring, retelling the story to a new pair of ears every minute. The moment was one of my fondest memories; I know all of these people were well-wishers, but it felt sort of like an invasion of my own private thoughts.

"That is a beautiful ring, Lily." Alyssa Kensington, another old Gryffindor friend complimented, as her own boyfriend came up. "Oh, hi Sweetie!" She pecked him on the cheek. Apparently, I was dismissed.

"Frankiekins! Can you bring these in the kitchen?"

It was a strange thing to notice, but every person in the room seemed to have another affectionate name that they called their significant other. Was this a new development, or was only I noticing it because Marly had pointed it out earlier? She had complained about it, but I had even heard her and Sirius use specific names for each other.

"Want a drink, Miss Priss?"

"Sure, jerkhead."

They may not have been the most affectionate names, but they had been said with smiles, with shining eyes. It was a joke, something they shared.

I had only ever called James, 'James'. That's all I'd ever thought to call him. But now, it was tugging on my thoughts. Why had I never called him something else?

"Frank! Please bring these to the-"

"I got it." I muttered to Alice, collecting the empty glasses and plates. I heard her try to protest, but I was already moving through the crowd.

The empty kitchen was a reprieve from the party in the other room.

"It's a little overwhelming, isn't it?"

The door had never swung closed, as James had slid through right behind me.

"Yeah. I wasn't really expecting all of those people. Maybe some, but not the entirety of Gryffindor Tower." A real smile, instead of the one meant for the public, crossed my lips.

"Let me help." He grabbed some plates from me.

"We should really get back out there." I warned, glancing warily at the door.

"They'll do fine without us for a few minutes."

It was probably more than Alice would have liked us to do, since we were guests, but we washed up the dishes together, leaving them to dry in the strainer. We may or may not have thrown soap suds at each other, delighting at the different shapes they made on top of the other's heads, but that was left a mystery, as we were alone in the kitchen at the time.

James shook his hair out, and he leaned against the counter. I appraised him for a moment, our eyes locked in a thoughtful stare. Looking at him, it was only 'James' that went to leave my tongue, no other name came into my head. Well, maybe except for Prongs, but that wasn't my nick name to use.

"Why don't we have any pet names?"

James chuckled at my question, but I was more serious than he thought I was.

"Really. We only ever call each other 'Lily' or 'James'."

His crooked smile grew. "Maybe because those are our given names. And I love your name, Lily." He emphasized my name, sending thrills through me.

"I love saying your name too. But have you ever wondered? Or thought about it?"

He shrugged, still not taking me too seriously. "No. What would we even call each other?"

I leaned across the opposite end of the counter, bringing my face closer to his. "I don't know…have you ever been called Jim?"

There were no more chuckles from the man in front of me; it was an all out, gut-busting laugh. I'm surprised Alice wasn't barging in here, wondering what we were getting up to in her kitchen.

"No." He said between snickers.

"Jimmy?"

"Nope."

"Jimbo?"

He winced at that one. "Not ever in my life."

"Jay?"

"No, Lily." He was really getting a kick out of this.

I thought for a minute. I refused to call him 'Jamiekins', and that one had already been taken by Alice. There wasn't much else I could get from his name. Unless…

"What if I called you 'Mes."

A pause came in the laughter. His glasses were crooked on the tip of his nose.

"'Mes? You want to call me 'Mes?" His voice was incredulous.

I nodded, a smile growing on my lips. "Yeah! I think it's kind of cute."

James shook his head, the chuckles returning, but he didn't say no.

"Well I can't just be 'Mes, and you're still Lily. What about yours?" He asked, his eyes still sparkling with the laugh that was just waiting to come out again. "Lils? Lilyflower?"

Shaking my head, I bit my lip lightly. "There's already too many with my name in them from school."

"Alright then, no 'Lily' included." His hand came up, stroking a fake beard. I rolled my eyes, but I wasn't sure if he noticed or not. "Then, what about dear?"

"No way. That's what my mother calls my dad whenever she's unhappy with something."

"Okay, that's out…honey?"

"Nah, sounds too sweet."

"Punny, Lily. Very punny."

"Shut up, you know what I meant."

"Love?" He offered.

"As much as I love that one, it's too common."

"Sweetheart?"

"No."

None of these sounded right. Not for our relationship. Somehow, everyone else had nailed the pet name thing, and James and I were a little lost in that topic. Was there some sort of class everyone else had taken that we had missed out on? Pet Names For Your Lover 101?

James rounded the corner, his arms surrounding me, though only brushing my skin.

"What about _Darling_?" His lips ghosted along my cheek, and his voice caused shudders to travel down to my fingers, making them clench into a fist of their own accord.

"Hey, you two! This party is for you, you know. You can't hide in the kitchen all day!" Alice scolded, coming to deposit another platter into her sink.

"Sorry, Alice." James slipped his hands into his pocket as he made to follow her back out into the sitting room.

I caught his arm, turning him back to me for just a moment.

"Darling sounds good to me."

That smirk really should have stopped affecting me like this long ago, but it still hit me full on every time he flashed it at me, making my insides leap up, as if they'd turned to jelly.

We walked back out to the party together, arms linked, and James bent his head down to mine as the door closed behind us.

"Darling and 'Mes. What a pair."

*A/N: I didn't want to misspell it at all, but 'Mes' is pronounced as just 'Ms.' Ha. Hope you enjoyed this chapter! Love to all!


	37. Swinging

Our flat was wonderful. It really was. I loved our kitchen, our bedroom, the sitting room. It may have been small, but the size didn't matter; it was a place to live, and it was ours. It was still emptier than a usual flat, but it was slowly filling up with our clutter as the weeks went by.

Even our neighbors weren't bad. We had one older couple, empty nesters; and a group of university aged muggles all living together.

The only complaint we ever had, wasn't even about the flat. It wasn't about the neighbors. It wasn't even about the building maintenance.

It was about the park across the street, where they had the squeakiest swing set I had ever heard in my life.

"You'd think they'd have enough courtesy to keep their kids from swinging so early." James moaned, reaching over me to see the time that glowed from the clock. "Seven o'clock. It's seven o'clock in the bloody morning. What kid decides to swing at that time?"

He didn't even bother to roll back over to his side. Half of his weight still draped over me. I didn't bother flinging him off either.

"We'll get used to it." I tried to reassure him, though with that incessant squeaking breaking through my hearing, I wasn't so sure myself. James scoffed at my words even as he buried his head back into the crook of my neck.

My eyelids stayed glued shut. The sun was already peaking over the horizon, but it wouldn't be entering our third floor window for a good half hour yet. We really needed to invest in some curtains.

"Damn that swing." James grunted, his breath fanning over my skin, and he pulled me tighter.

_Screech, squeak, screech._

James' hand patted the mattress space behind us, gripping his pillow to pull it over our heads, muffling my laughter. The pillow seemed to help for awhile, blocking out the light and the sound, but we were listening too hard, as people usually do, in wait for the irritating sound to reach beneath our pillow.

_Squeeeeak._

"Ugh!" I threw the blankets off of me, James rolling along with a groan, and I got up.

Of course, kids were constantly at the park across the street. But the noise didn't bother us as much throughout the day, as it was drowned out by the sounds of people and cars on the street below us. I'd told James we would just have to get used to the sound early in the morning, but that wasn't happening.

My feet carried me automatically to the kitchen, with my eyes still blurry with sleep. Reaching out, I flicked on the radio, turning the volume knob up. Somehow, over the chords of the song playing, the whining of the swing could still sneak its way through our windows.

If our apartment was empty, our fridge was a wasteland: a half-gallon of milk, some nasty looking yogurt, and some coffee creamer.

"James! When was the last time we went shopping?" I called. No answer came from down the hall. "Lazy bum," I muttered to myself, slamming the fridge shut. "Did you hear me?" my voice carried again as I shuffled back towards our bedroom. Before I could reach our door however, it was flung open, James looking frazzled as he pulled on clothes that did not match at all.

"What are you doing?" I tried to stifle my grin.

"You're wrong. I'm not getting used to it."

"James, you have to give it time. You won't even notice it in a few weeks." I reached out my hand to try and help him tuck in his shirt, but he gave up, half-heartedly shooing my hands away.

"Yes, I will. And I am done waiting for these people to stop going to the park at such an ungodly hour." He fixed his crooked glasses, and marched past me.

"You still haven't told me what you're doing." I crossed my arms over my chest as I followed him down the hallway.

"I'm going to show them how annoying that damn swing is." A determined frown was formed on his brow as he pulled open the front door.

I slipped out behind him, neither of us even attempting to grab shoes.

"James, this is ridiculous." He paid me no mind, trudging down the stairs, still failing at tucking in his shirt.

"No, what is ridiculous is that dumb swing. I will not tolerate this anymore." He sounded like a politician.

This early in the morning, there were not many people wandering the sidewalks, which I was grateful for; I was still in my pajamas: an old Quidditch shirt of James' and a pair of boxers.

I linked my arm with his as we crossed the road. There weren't many people at the park, but they were all wide awake, with children sprinting all around, screaming to their heart's delight. And there were three kids, steady in their momentum, back and forth; the causes of the squeaking swings. The noise was a hundred times louder down here than up in our apartment. Didn't anyone ever oil these things?

"You're really going to kick those kids off of the swings?"

"Why not?"

"Just to prove a point?"

"Yes."

"You know that you used to call me a 'buzz kill' for doing the exact same thing to you and the Marauders?"

James may have heard my comment, but he made no response to it as he straightened his shirt the best he could, stepping forward towards the swing set.

Following him through the grass, I realized how out of place we were. Two young adults surrounded by children with older, married parents. Not to mention our mismatched clothes and pajamas that we were still dressed in. Some odd looks trailed us, but I kept in James' tracks as he strode to one of the open swings. He collapsed in it, beginning to bring his legs forward and backward to lift the swing into motion.

I leaned back against the iron bars of the set, watching him swing back and forth. The children on the other end sent strange looks his way, but he only had eyes for me. One eyebrow slid up and he stuck his tongue out at me.

"You're not kicking them out." He only shook his head at my taunt, brining himself higher. With his heavier weight than the kids on the other side, the swing set meant for adolescents was shaking a bit every time he swung forward.

Eventually, the kids leapt from the swings, retreating back towards their parents. He smirked at me, smugness shining on his expression.

"That worked well." I mocked, wondering when the complaints would show up to our flat, about misbehaving teenagers, scaring away the neighborhood kids.

Now that the kids were gone, it was only James left, now creating the noise that had been his own pet peeve.

"Are you going to stop squeaking anytime soon?" I gestured to the top of his swing.

Again, he did not answer my question, only said, "I forgot how fun this was." The squeaking sound got worse as he kept carrying himself back and forth, back and forth. A small, content smile was growing over his face.

The wind from his swinging blew over me, causing my still un-brushed hair to whip about my head.

"You were just complaining about the noise!" I threw my hands up, laughing at him.

James only snorted along with me. "Yeah, maybe it's not as bad as I thought."

Ducking underneath his outstretched legs, I maneuvered to the swing on the other side of him. Before I was barely seated in the swing, his hand shot out, gripping the chain of my swing to jolt me into motion. I shouted, adding to the racket the swings were making. We were far worse than any of those kids from before.

My path was crooked for a little while, and I tried to kick him even as I straightened it out.

"You hypocrite." I accused jokingly.

James' eyes were focused on the sky that was still lightly tinged pink, but growing bluer with each trip our swings made forward and backward. The morning was filled only with the screeching from the swings, and some rumbling of the few automobiles moseying on by.

I glanced over at him, and a grin grew on my face as I saw us moving together as one.

"Look, we're married!"

James' eyes widened, and he pulled his gaze away from the sky to pin on me.

"Not yet, Lily…" His voice was very wary; it was adorable. His brow held a confused curve, and his lips pursed in a question. I really needed to work on explaining muggle sayings to him before I used them.

"I know we're not, idiot," I said with a smile. "It's just something we used to say when we were young. Look, our swings are in sync. When we were little, that meant we were 'married'."

It all sounded so silly to tell him, now that we were older, graduated from Hogwarts. I expected James to scoff, but the squeaking of the swings was taken from my ears by his quiet, barely audible chuckle.

He let a hand sneak out again, not jolting my chain, but gripping it tightly, keeping our swings in sync. Keeping the two of us "married". Though my toes were still cold from the morning air, my cheeks were growing warm and the sun wasn't even reaching us over the trees yet.

He'd brought his eyes back to the sky, but I couldn't look away from him. In this light, his skin glowed; it was captivating.

I let my own hand move to his chain, our arms left crossed between us, our legs moving together.

Even though the squeaks were sounding from right above us, they were silent to my ears. I couldn't even hear them as James and I swung together, back and forth, back and forth, as the morning passed us by.

**A/N: Sorry guys! I had a super busy weekend! The next update will be on Saturday. Thanks for reading!


	38. Movie Nights

It was pretty funny really, the extremes that the Order meetings went to. They either began far too early in the morning, or continued far too late into the night, all when the rest of the world was still asleep.

On one of those late nights, I had been so tired after the meeting had been dispersed; I'd been told later that James had practically had to carry me as we side-along apparated back to our block. I don't actually recall the journey back to our flat; my senses returned back only slightly when we were home. James had laid me on the couch, with the whole flat being filled with the noises from the shower echoing through the darkness.

Leaning forward as far as I could without allowing myself to leave the couch, I reached, searching blindly. My fingers finally found the knob, and turned it swiftly before collapsing back on the couch. The main room was suddenly bright, casting strange shadows all over the walls.

The only reason we owned a television was because my father had been quite shocked when he found out James and I hadn't bought one ourselves. Apparently, it was something every household should have, and he had so generously given us the old one that used to reside in our sitting room, before going out to buy a new one, against my mother's will.

James had come home from a day out with Remus and Sirius, and frozen in the doorway, staring at the screen that had been then playing a game show. Dad had gotten up to greet him, and James had acted as normal as he could, shaking my dad's hand while he still kept an eye on the television. After Dad had gone, it had taken quite awhile to explain the machine to James, and he had finally accepted to keep it. He had slowly gotten used to the noise of the static, though he was still rather wary of it, mostly because he was convinced that the people inside the box could see him just as he could see them.

The shower shut off, making the odd humming noise in the wall that we had found was caused by the old plumbing trying to recharge after so much warm water was used. My eyes stayed on the screen even as I listened hard: the shower curtain brush aside, and wet feet slapped down on the tile floor.

"_Coming up next, 'Creature from the Black Lagoon', stay tuned all you night owls!"_ The enthusiastic voice shouted from the telly.

My gaze finally tore from the box as the door to the bathroom flung open, light streaming in down the hall along with some steam. Footsteps padded down the hallway, and I was greeted with the sight of a very much undressed James. He swung a towel around his waist, a smirk prominent on his lips. The bugger didn't even have his glasses on yet; I swear he could sense my blushes.

I threw one of the couch pillows in his direction, but he caught it easily, sauntering over to me.

"You're still wet, don't you dare sit down on this couch." I warned, my tone not sounding too threatening as I finished with a yawn. He only chuckled deeply, landing his lips on my temple before he moseyed back down the hallway towards the bedroom when some commercial for laundry detergent ended, and the opening credits began for the late night movie.

"What in the world are you watching?" James asked as he came back, this time wearing pajama bottoms. I noticed with a small smile that he skirted around the television, almost against the wall as he came nearer to the couch.

I didn't need to answer him, as the title of the movie appeared on the screen, all in black and white, with eerie music twanging in the background. A snort sounded as he rolled onto the couch from the back, pulling me against him.

"Are you coming to bed?" His voice was husky, and goose bumps grew all over my skin.

"I was just sleeping. I'm actually not that tired anymore."

James sent me a skeptical look as another yawn stretched out, but my statement was true. I didn't make to move from the couch, and James stayed as well, his head leaning on top of mine.

"This is ridiculous."

"What?" I tried to glance up at him, but it was too hard to move in our knotted position.

"This." His hand lazily indicated the television.

"The movie?"

James shrugged. "Sure, if that's what you call it."

"Of course it is. That's why they're playing it so late."

"Is this supposed to be scary?"

The creature on the screen waded up from the lagoon, chasing the people who were trying to enjoy a vacation there. The suit was obviously plastic, and the mouth moved like a machine.

"Maybe for other people." I snorted. James laughed again as the creature swiped a large, fake claw at one of the men who tried to fight it, knocking him off of his feet.

It wouldn't even be worth going to bed now, the sun would be coming up in only a few hours. And I liked sitting here with James, even if the entertainment wasn't quite up to par.

"Do you want some popcorn?" I asked, pulling away from him to stand up and stretch.

He actually tried to look around me at the screen. "Why?"

"Why not?"

The light from the television was shining indirectly into the kitchen, as I moved slowly in the dark. The ceiling light in the kitchen was blinding, so I only switched on the dim light above the oven.

We only had a little bit of corn kernels left in the jar, so I emptied all of them into the pot of the already melted butter. A scream came from the television just as the light of the kitchen blazed to life.

I blinked rapidly, my pupils probably shrinking to a miniscule size.

James came in the door, doing some disoriented blinking himself as he stepped towards me.

"Are you okay in here?" He asked, coming to lean against the counter.

"Yeah. Why wouldn't I be? You could have stayed in there watching the movie."

"I was lonely. And cold." He shrugged.

Some kernels began popping in the pan, louder than the muffled conversations from the television in the other room.

"Did the creature scare you too much?" I reached over, pinching his side as I emptied some popcorn into a bowl.

"Sure it did. I'm frightened out of my mind." He drawled sarcastically, cowering in the corner. I rolled my eyes at him, thrusting our popcorn into his arms as I shut off the switch, moving back to the couch.

The bright kitchen light had clouded my eyes, so back in the dark all I saw were blotches of white and the television screen.

"Shit," James cursed, shuffling closer behind me.

"It's your fault we can't see. You're the one who turned on the light in the kitchen."

He scoffed. "Do you have your wand on you?"

I felt around my pockets, feeling James' hand check too. "Nope."

"Well, shit."

"You already said that."

"Yeah I did, smarty-pants."

"Wrong nickname." I giggled at him, clinging to his arm as our eyes adjusted slowly, watching the movie from here.

"Sorry, Darling." He teased, pulling me close.

The creature escaped from the trap the other characters had put him in as we stood there, stuffing our faces filled with popcorn. We didn't move until James prodded me in the back.

"I can see now, let's go."

My eyes were seeing clear in the dark again as well, but James' warm hands felt nice on my hips as he maneuvered us back to the couch, with his chest brushing my back with every step.

I pulled the blanket over us as we settled back into the cushions. James' arms slid around me, more so he could access the popcorn than anything else, but I rested my head against him.

"Can we go to sleep when this movie is over?" It was his turn to let out a huge yawn.

"Sure." I was quite enjoying our little movie night, but the meeting had been long, he was tired, I understood that.

As the movie carried out, James and I took to rooting for the creature actually, since the people were actually being quite rude to encroach on his home, and were left disappointed by the ending, watching all of the people sail off happily.

James made to get up, pulling me with him, but we froze when the happy announcer's voice came back, interrupting the credits.

"_And we have 'Revenge of the Creature' coming up next folks! Stay tuned!"_

Turning slowly to face James, I rose my eyebrows in a question.

"It was cheesy." James said, though the corner of his lips had drawn up ever so slightly.

"Yes it was. But you are as curious as I am."

We regarded each other for awhile, advertisements chiming from the television. Then, more creepy music came from the speakers, and the light in the room was dimmed again as the colors disappeared into the black and white of the movie again.

James held up the empty bowl between us. "We're going to need more popcorn."

**A/N: I have actually seen the first movie, 'Creature from the Black Lagoon', but the scenes described may not be that accurate, since that was awhile ago! Thanks for reading all!


	39. Not Being Alone

"If you make your vision fuzzy, it seems like we're just patrolling the hallways again."

James' comment brought a shaky smile to my face, but with teeth chattering, it wasn't too convincing. For a late summer night, it was unnaturally cold. Wind whispered through the leaves, and wound around the houses surrounding us, blowing right through us.

The Order meeting had been cut short tonight, with irregular action being reported in a muggle neighborhood. Dumbledore hadn't wanted any of the muggles to suspect any danger, and had sent James and me to check things out. That was already a bad idea to start with, but dealing with the fact that nothing had shown up for hours, James and I got quite distracted.

"I wish we were back patrolling hallways." I replied with a shaky whisper, leaning against a tree trunk. "At least that was eventful. We'd have caught three couples by now."

"Are you sure we weren't one of those couples?" James moved up close, hands shoved in his pockets. His forehead bumped mine, and his glasses slid down his nose.

"I never said we weren't."

The wind blew violently again, and James moved closer, blocking it from reaching me. His hands came up to pull my hood over my ears. He made to return them quickly to his pockets, but I snatched them down into my gloved hands, bringing them close to my stomach.

"How long did we have to be out here again?"

James shrugged. "I don't think we were given a time limit."

"Good. I can't feel my toes anymore; if I stay out here any longer I think they'll fall off."

"There's a pub a few neighborhoods away."

"Hmmm,"

It's not that James and I were slackers. We especially weren't during patrols. But anyone would have gotten bored in that quiet, freezing neighborhood, where every single person was inside, tucked deep in their warm beds.

"Well, we could definitely check out that pub to see if there is any abnormal activity there." James nodded thoughtfully, as if taking my suggestion seriously, and then pulled us both away from the tree, out footsteps moving together down the street.

The pub was instant relief for my poor toes, with almost too much heat coming from the heater as well as the bustling bodies around us. It was amazing how crowded the place was at such a late hour.

"'Ello there good love." A man slurred, stepping toward us. James gripped my arm, tugging me out of the way. My cheek brushed up against his sweater, and heat suffused through my stomach.

"Let's go find us a corner." I could hear the grin in his voice, and allowed him to steer us away from the group of people and alcohol.

"I don't need anything to drink, I just want the warmth." I snuggled in close to James, nuzzling my face into the side of his neck. His arms slid around me, and I felt him press his lips to my hairline.

With my eyes closed, I could pretend that we weren't in the pub, that we weren't out on patrol in the middle of a war. All that mattered was the man here in my arms, and that we were here together.

James suddenly tensed, his fingers clutching tightly in my jacket.

"James? What's-?" I tried to twist in his arms and look up at him, but his arms had become constricting.

"Maybe coming in here wasn't a bad idea." Despite the casual words, his voice had taken on a sharp edge in his whisper, all traces of playfulness long gone.

I froze, my own fingers holding tight to his jumper. "James?"

Slowly, James hands spun me around, tugging my hood even lower over my eyes. "That's Avery, over in that corner. I don't recognize any of the others, but that is definitely Avery."

The former Slytherin was on the opposite side of the pub from us. He was lingering mostly in the shadows, making his face blurry in the light, but James was undoubtedly right. It was Avery.

"Call for backup-"

"Not in here. He'll notice."

With adrenaline pumping through my body on high speed, my eye searched all around, and I squeezed his arm, nodding my head towards the wall adjacent to us. "There's a back door behind that pillar."

James only squeezed back on my shoulder to show he understood. His foot nudged mine, and I moved forward, but it was as if I was walking in molasses. I was too alert, and too panicked. I wanted to sprint out, but that would draw too much attention. Sucking in a deep breath, I allotted all of my focus onto James' hand on the small of my back, leading me forward. We would get out of there. All I had to do was trust him.

There was a scuffle of chairs behind us, and James' hand pushed me faster. I only caught one word before all hell broke loose. "Run."

The only thing that made my feet move was hearing James' ragged breathing behind me, indicating him following me.

Breaking through the door, the cold didn't even affect us any longer. In fact, I could feel a layer of sweat clinging to my skin under my jacket.

I hadn't even remembered pulling my wand out, but the warm wood against the skin of my hand was comforting nonetheless. Spinning on one foot, I turned to face our pursuers.

James was already in mid battle with Avery and another one, the different colored lights reflecting oddly off of his glasses, and two more had just made shots for me. Ducking out of the way, I sped towards them, praying no muggles had decided to follow them out of the pub. I heard one of them grunt when my jinx hit him, but it didn't hold him back for long. They shuffled along around me, trying to surround and confuse me, but I kept hurling any hex I could think of in their directions, blocking their paths.

I heard a familiar shout, and panic shot through my heart, but it would be too costly to turn to James at the moment. One false move and these two would have me pinned. Something hit me, I wasn't sure exactly what it was, object or jinx, but I whirled towards the figure that sent it.

"Stupefy!"

The figure flew backwards, and silence followed, with the exception of my heavy breathing and the wind flying through the streets. The only person left in the street was the man I'd just stunned, who was already beginning to groan. I wasn't too worried about him retaliating though, he'd hit his head on the road hard enough. The rest of our attackers had disappeared.

A hand fell on my shoulder, and without a thought, I flailed my wand in his face. He shouted, his hand gripping my wand.

"Lily! Lily, relax, it's me. Lily," James soothed, and my screams fell back into heavy breathing. His hazel eyes were as alive as mine, still filled with extra energy, but just seeing them, just seeing his smile, my knees gave out, legs shaking, and I fell into him. He held me close, neither of us worrying about the ability to breathe.

"Are you alright?" I asked, getting a mouthful of his jacket.

"Fine. You?"

"Good."

"We should report this to Dumbledore."

"Yeah."

Even though we should have cleared out, especially before any muggles came to the area, and before our friend by the concrete wall caught hold of his senses again, we only stayed there, clinging to each other.

James began shaking, and I tried to bring his jacket closer around him to warm him, but catching a glimpse of his face, I saw his smile was back, that it was not the laughter causing his shudder, but his laugh.

"Well that was enough fun for one night, don't you agree?"


	40. Anticipation

The main room of our flat was strewn with lace, flowers, dresses, white tablecloths, candles, photos, and ties, odd pieces of decoration, baskets, and invitations. There was barely room to move.

With a groan, I collapsed onto our couch, crushing wedding magazines as I went, but I could care less by now. If I even caught a small glance of one, I think I'd throw up.

Planning our wedding wasn't a bad thing, not at all. James and I were still excited, still anxious. It was just all of the planning that had to go into an event that would last a single day was getting overwhelming, tedious.

"Why did we decide to do this again? Why don't we run away and get married?" I whined loud enough for James to hear from the kitchen, which was barricaded by dress robes.

"I believe I gave you that offer quite some time ago, long before our engagement, and it was _you_ who did not take me up on it, Darling." James teased as he entered the room, tripping over some shoe boxes.

"Oh, hush." I chastised with a smile.

"I'm just saying." He shrugged, magazines crinkling under him as he sat down near my feet, letting a hand fall on my leg.

"I don't know why my mother can't take some of this stuff. We don't have any room for _our_ things in here, much less our entire wedding." My hand indicated the hazardous landscape of our flat.

I caught a muscle twitch in James' cheek at the mention of my mother, and I didn't blame him. She had gone way over the top with wedding planning, even though at first she had disapproved.

"_You've only been engaged for a few months."_ She'd muttered to me while we'd gone looking for bridesmaid dresses with Alice, Marly, and unfortunately Petunia. (There was no way I could get out of having my sister apart of the wedding if my mother had a say.)

The thing my mother did not realize was there wasn't much more time we could take. With the oncoming war, Death Eaters closing in at every opportunity, Order meetings taking up the majority of our time, James and I already felt like we were back in school; stealing moments together in the empty hallways of headquarters, sneaking glances out of the corners of our eyes, hands brushing and knees knocking under the table. Why should we waste any more time?

My mother was worried about whether I was making the right decision, but she really had no reason to. James and I belonged together, it really was that simple. There was no point in delaying the wedding.

However, it still seemed one hundred years away, and that was killing me as slowly as planning it was.

"Maybe we could go get married now, and just pretend on the day of." I suggested, already planning out our journey to the Ministry of Magic, to the Law Offices to sign our wedding contract.

"I'd love to, but that wouldn't make the planning stop." When did he become the rational one?

"Shit."

James chuckled, his hand moving to rub my feet over my mismatched socks. "There's only a few more weeks." He reassured, pinching my toe, causing me to fall into a fit of giggles.

"I know. I just don't want to wait."

That brain melting smirk formed on his face, and he left his position, bringing himself parallel to me on the couch, hovering just so the fabric of our shirts was touching.

"I don't want to wait to be bound to you either," Warmth spread across my face, even as I beamed beneath him, "but it'll come. There's only a little time left. Let's enjoy it."

"What, because you won't enjoy being married to me?" I poked fun at him, my hand brushing over his shoulders to pull him closer.

He grinned, breath fanning over my skin as his lips stopped only inches from mine.

"I will thoroughly enjoy being married to you. I can barely keep myself calm, much less you. I was saying that for your benefit." He admitted, a light blush of his own growing on his cheeks.

Not being able to stand how close he was anymore, I brought my head forward, our lips connecting briefly, before his traveled their way down the line of my jaw, along my neck, to my shoulder.

"We should really be doing more planning," My voice came out in a hiss as my eyes fluttered closed.

"We've still got a whole day." James mumbled, resting his head against my chest, his unruly hair tickling my chin.

"You said that yesterday."

"And you said it the day before."

Damn, he did have me there. "This isn't something we can procrastinate on, 'Mes."

I felt the shaking of his laughter at the nickname, and he turned his head back to face me, his dark chocolate gaze sending trembles all over me.

"We'll be fine." His fingers tangled in my hair, tugging on it playfully. "Don't worry about it. It's about us, not any of these silly plans."

Keeping my eyes fixed on his, everything else in our flat fell away: the clothes, the shoes, the invitations, the decorations, all of it.

He was right. None of that is what mattered. Not how the day looked, or who would be there. It was about us. We are all that were important, to me, to him, to us.

"I'm not worried," I whispered, my forehead falling against his, "I just can't wait."

**A/N: Here we go! Soon we're going to have ourselves a Mr. and Mrs. Potter! Sorry for the long time no update. Goodness, life gets busy once classes begin again!


	41. Special Days and Bad Luck

"He could have at least tried to do something with his hair." Mum muttered as she fussed with my dress. I couldn't stop the smile from forming on my lips, closing my eyes just to picture James' ridiculous mop of hair that would look a little out of place compared to his sharp dress robes.

"Do we have the flowers for the lapels? All of the bouquets?" My mother's voice echoed, to no one in particular really. She was panicking for no reason, making a big deal over every little thing. I was worried she might lose her head anytime soon. That wouldn't look so well in the pictures.

"Petunia! Where are the flowers?" She shouted, having no care at who heard her, though by this time, there would be plenty of guests out in the entry way able to hear her.

My sister came into the room, shrugging and saying something about a man delivering them, but losing sight of where he put them. Another spat began between the two of them, and my eyes rolled for the hundredth time that morning it seemed.

They seemed to be getting along worse than my sister and I usually do. Petunia had gone around during the rehearsal dinner yesterday, telling everyone who would listen that the bride and groom always feel pangs of regret, that they are not making the right decision. She'd also felt the need to say that to me this morning, as she'd squeezed into her dress. Mum had chastised her, saying that was a normal thing to feel, and they'd started fighting all over again.

I was the only one feeling calm. Even Marly and Alice were buzzing about me, fixing my hair when I thought it looked fine, fixing the pearl necklace I had borrowed from my mother, when it was already laying just right. I'd tuned out the arguing and tittering long ago.

"Oh, goodness. Where's the veil? Bridesmaids! We have an emergency!" Mum scuttled out of the room, shrieking, the three girls in red dresses following her.

Sighing as deeply as I could with the dress constricting most of my air, I dropped my face into my hands. All of the stress my mother was feeling was making me tired and I still had this whole day before me. Everyone else seemed to be nervous but me. Sure, my lungs were tight, and my stomach was much lighter than usual. But there was no sign of anxiety. Not a speck. If Petunia had been trying to scare me with all of her comments yesterday and this morning, she'd done a terrible job. There was no regret. Nothing about this day felt wrong.

I took a small peak between my fingers at myself in the mirror. Of course I'd seen the dress the day we'd bought it, and I'd loved it. But today, I didn't really look like myself.

"Excuse me? I need to grab a-…Oh." The voice that was laughing at first broke off, finishing with a gasp of breath. Lifting my head, immediately recognizing the voice, I stared at him in the mirror.

Those hazel eyes ran over my reflection, his fingers clutching the door he had just swung open. He stood perfectly still, as if his brain had flickered and shut down.

Slowly, with knees shaking I turned to face him.

"Merlin, Lily." A smile found its way to my face as his hand left the door to trail a path through his hair that was true to my mother words, the usual untamable mess.

"What?" I glanced down. Was there a stain? Or worse, a rip? I had already tripped up the stairs in this dress, earning a loud snort from my sister.

"You're beautiful." His voice was barely louder than a whisper, and he seemed to be having as much trouble breathing as I was.

"Oh," It was a repeat of what he'd said before, but my voice broke, the epitome of grace. All of my doubts about the dress vanished. I mentally patted myself on the back for choosing this one.

He finally entered the room fully, the door clicking shut behind him. "I can't believe it," I had to bend to hear him from the stand, and he took advantage of that, brushing his lips against my forehead.

"Believe what?" My eyes fluttered closed, hands coming up to steady myself on his shoulders.

"That you're mine."

My stomach flipped, but I couldn't resist teasing him. "Not yet. Not officially." I pushed back from him, stepping down from the stand, hoisting my dress up so I wouldn't trip again. "You know, Muggles actually consider it bad luck for the groom to see the bride before the ceremony?"

His hand shot out, grabbing my hand and spun me back around to face him. Lips pulled into a smirk, he stepped towards me.

"Is that so?" Even in the high heels my mother had forced me into, James was still five inches taller than me, and I had to tip my head back to keep eye contact. That just gave him an opening. Still in a smirk, he leaned down to press his mouth to mine. "That's kind of a silly superstition, don't you think?"

He was careful not to touch the dress, only keeping his hands on the available bare skin of my arms.

"You might not think it's so silly if my mother comes back in here to find you."

As he laughed against my skin, his hands slid down my arms to tangle with mine.

"Are you ready?" He muttered.

That was an odd question at the moment. Was I ready? To marry him, yes. I was ready to marry him the moment he'd asked me on the street the day we'd visited his parents, that already felt so long ago. Was I ready to go out in front of all of those people? Not so much.

"We could still elope."

"And leave everybody out there?"

"Yes."

A chuckle rumbled in his chest, and I stared up at him, grabbing his chin.

"I'm completely serious. We could go out the back door right now, apparate to the Ministry, and get it over with."

"Well, someone's eager." He laughed as I leaned into him with a groan.

"You're not listening."

"Yes, I am Lil. But do you really want to leave now when this is the day that we've planned and stressed over for months now? And you would regret not staying."

He had me, and he knew it. The idiot.

"What happened to Marauder James? He'd elope with me. He enjoyed breaking the rules."

"Oh, Marauder James has gone nowhere. And according to you, I already have broken the rules. I'm not supposed to be here right now, seeing you. It was 'bad luck', correct?" He whispered with a laugh, tickling my side. I tried to wrestle away from him in a fit of giggles, but he held my hands, bringing them behind his back so I couldn't move.

My eyes came back up to meet his, those hazel eyes boring into mine. Pressing one more kiss to my lips, he released me and backed up against the door. "I'd better go, if we're going to do this thing. See you in a bit," he saluted, and I returned it as he disappeared.

I was still trying to control my galloping heartbeat when my mother came back in. Apparently the veil situation had been resolved, as my mother fastened it to my head while I was still in a daze.

"Are you ready sweetheart?" Looking around in the mirror, I saw my mother, sister, Alice, and Marly all staring at me in their reflections, smiles on their faces. Well, all except for my sister's. The sour puss, as James had taken to calling her.

With a short nod, I was pulled into another flurry as we moved to the room where the ceremony would take place. With each step, my smile grew for no other reason except that I knew James was already waiting for me on the other side of this wooden door.

Before I was really ready, the music was cued to start, and Petunia, Marly, and Alice were stepping through the doors, arms linked with Sirius'', Remus, and Peter's, who all sent me thumbs up before they left.

My mother and father both took one of my arms, and we finally pushed through the doors.

I was told later that everyone was awed by the dress, that everyone stood once the music changed, that the ceremony had actually started. Once the doors opened, my eyes fastened on the man down the long aisle, standing with his hands clasped in front of him. There was a hint of a smile on those lips, the same one that he'd had just in the dressing room. His eyes lit up just at the sight of me, and he almost broke from position to run a hand through his hair again, but he caught himself.

Everything else fell away in the room, and he was the only thing that mattered, just as he had said the other day. The only thing that mattered today was him and me.

I guess that superstition is pretty silly. There was no way our luck could go bad today, no matter what happened.

*A/N: A wedding for a present! Happy Holidays everyone! More chapters are to come!


	42. Collecting Seashells

"How many of these do you think I can carry?" James laughed, his voice reaching my ears over the gentle _wish _waves rolling up on the shore.

Straightening up with another shell clutched in my palm, I gave him my cheekiest grin.

James' cupped hands were already overflowing with the collection of shells I had gathered up as we followed the shoreline of the beach. We were far away from our rented loft, but I didn't care. Even as the sun sank below the waves, I didn't want to leave the sight behind. Besides, this was my first time ever going to the beach.

"I can take some," Pulling the hem of my beach cover-up into a sack, I dropped my newfound shell into it. I could hear James chuckle again from beside me but there was no mocking tone in it. He had been truly flabbergasted when he'd found out I'd never been to or ever seen the ocean in all my years. So every small thing that amazed me amazed him as well. I hadn't known this was what he'd planned for our honeymoon. For an impromptu trip, it really was quite impressive.

James and I had argued the topic of our honeymoon quite vehemently, but everyone had heard none of it.

"_We don't need to go on a honeymoon. We've already discussed it in depth." I tried to close the conversation and return to more important things, but I guess our honeymoon took precedence over signs of Death Eater activity in Westchester._

"_Every couple should have a honeymoon. Even in these times. We can handle ourselves just fine." Dumbledore insisted from his place at the head of the long table we all sat around._

"_That's not what we mean. We'll take a honeymoon when things calm down. But now isn't the right time." James challenged, his hand finding mine underneath the table and squeezing our fingers together. I gave him a reassuring squeeze, just in case._

"_This is nonsense. Just go on a honeymoon for Merlin's sake!"Sirius interjected, pouring himself another mug of coffee. It was already getting late, and we still weren't speaking on the topic we'd gathered for._

"_Yes. If anyone deserves it, you two do," Alice agreed. "You two always volunteer for raids and patrols. Let us do some of the dirty work while you enjoy yourselves."_

"_Enjoy ourselves? Is that what you think we'd do? Every moment we'd be thinking about what's happening here!" I responded._

"_The two of you don't have to win this war all by yourselves," Remus murmured. Four days after James and my wedding had been a full moon, and that was already two weeks ago. He was still feeling a little off beat._

"_We aren't trying to. We're just saying that now-"_

"_What if I ordered you to take a honeymoon?" Dumbledore mused, his long bony fingers coming up to stroke his monster of a beard._

_Laughter was a rare sound in the meeting room, but now it was filling every corner._

"_Who knew James and Lily, the lovebirds, would have to be forced to go on their own honeymoon!" Marly snorted, using the table for support as the laughter overcame her._

_My cheeks warmed slightly, and I had no doubt that they matched James'._

"_Yes. I think I will," our old Headmaster's eyes sparkled at us. "You two are not to set foot in Headquarters for two weeks. So whether you travel somewhere, which I encourage you do, or stay in your flat, you have yourselves a honeymoon."_

_James and I complained about how ridiculous the order was for a good chunk of the meeting, but no one seemed to see our side. Even Alastor Moody, the rough and tough Auror that had very recently gotten a replacement magical eye for the normal one he'd lost in an attack, agreed with Dumbledore's order. Probably because he was growing tired of seeing through the table to find James and my hands clasped, or through the walls to find us sneak meetings of our own down the hallway._

_Stumbling into our flat long after the meeting had ended, neither of us bothered to switch on the light-we knew the halls by heart now. We could even skip over the floorboards that creaked with our eyes closed._

"_I don't have the slightest idea of where we would go for a honeymoon," I confessed to James in the darkness as we shuffled around our bedroom, dressing for sleep._

"_I have a hunch. Just leave it to me, okay?"_

_I nodded in return, forgetting that he couldn't see me in the dark, and grabbed a hold of his arm, pulling him down with me to the comfort of our bed._

So here we were, waltzing along the beachside while the rest of the Order of the Phoenix planned strategies for raids.

The first day of the honeymoon, we had been filled with the worry we had warned the Order about, but it had evaporated by the next day. There was nothing we could do from here, in the beaches of France, to help in attacks on Death Eater hideouts, so we might as well make the most of our time here. It was actually pleasant, not having to think of the war, even if it was only for a little while. All that was important was whether James and I wanted to hang out at the beach all day, or wander through the small village that was only a few kilometers from our loft.

"I like that one," James commented, nodding his head toward the shell I had just picked up. "It's got some red in it. Like your hair."

"Yeah," I agreed, appraising the small thing in the sunlight that was sinking fast below the waves. The moon was already visible on the opposite side of the darkening sky. "I guess we should head back." A resigned tone came as I dropped the reddish shell into my makeshift basket.

"Probably," James sounded as excited as I did about returning to our rented residence, but he cradled our shell collection against his stomach and we turned around, following our own footsteps back to where we'd started.

By the time we stumbled up the back stairs, fumbling for the door knob, it was already pitch black out on the beach. There were no nearby city lights, so it was almost as dark as the Hogwarts grounds used to get.

"Are we really going to keep all of these?" He asked as I searched for my wand, as his hands were full. The pitter-patter of shells hitting the floor echoed around us, and I hoped none of them were shattering.

"I intend to, yes," A small groan escaped him, and I nudged him roughly with my elbow. Finally grasping my wand, I held it in front of us. "Lumos," and the room lit up.

Technically, we weren't supposed to be doing magic, as we were in a Muggle populated area, but no one was here to see, and we hadn't gotten reprimanded for it yet.

"This is a lot of shells though," He commented, emptying his large handful all over the table. Pouring out my stash, I only added to our pile. There were so many different colors and textures, it looked as if they were all fake. There was no way something so small and beautiful could have survived in such a tumultuous ocean for years upon years. Yet they had made it. And here they sat, laid out before us.

"Yeah, it is. And we're still here for another few days!" He squirmed after I pinched him in the stomach, but I dodged him before he could reciprocate. "We need something to remember our trip by, don't we?"

His hands wound around my waist, surprising me, and his lips found the side of my neck. "We're definitely going to remember it. We don't need shells for that."

Shivers ran a long trail up my spine and rested in my brain, making it melt into a useless puddle as he mouth created a map along my skin.

"I'm still keeping the shells," I warned, though my voice was not as fearsome as I'd meant it to be, leaning into him.

James only chuckled in response, pulling me tighter against him, making every edge line up against each other. "That's fine, as long as I can keep you."

"You already have me, idiot." Spinning around in his grasp, I tried shoving my hands between us, but James was quicker, pressing our chests together.

"Well then that works out fantastically, doesn't it?"

I wasn't able to respond with my own snarky remark, as he had already captured my lips with his.


	43. Sleeping Habits

The rush of the waves rolling in and out of the shore reminded me of the way our breaths had sounded only hours ago. My lungs were working normally now, but it had been a labor just to get one gust of breath out before, with James' weight bearing down on me, and my heart tumbling in my chest, distracting my lungs from their assigned job.

My skin still felt warm where his hands had brushed, where his lips had pressed. Lying beneath the sheets, our legs entwined in some haphazard knot, a smile graced my lips ever so slightly.

"Are you asleep?" James whispered into the darkness.

I reached out to grasp his hand between us, assuring him that sleep had not come yet, but it was definitely threatening to.

"How do you feel?" He whispered, his breath lightly ruffling my hair.

I couldn't help myself. A giggle escaped me, and I turned from my back to lie on my side, facing him. "What do you think?"

"I don't know," his voice became rushed, almost panicked. "I don't know how it feels for a girl, but you were-"

Breaking off his sentence, I pressed my lips to his, grasping at a clump of his hair that had, (though it seemed impossible), grown even messier. "I feel fine."

One of his hands very shyly came to rest on my waist, his thumb rubbing a small circle there. Tingles began at that spot, slowly spreading throughout my entire being.

"Are you aiming for a second round?" I teased. Finally, his timid manner disappeared, a laugh ringing out through the room. He brought himself forward, hovering lightly above me.

"Why, are you waiting for one?" His fingers curled, tickling my side. My legs, out of my control as a response to the pinch at my waist, began kicking, and James collapsed on my side as not to get a certain part of his anatomy injured by me. Our guffaws were much louder than the ocean now, and I only hoped we weren't disturbing any of the other visitors that were staying in similar villas around ours.

Giggle erupted here and there, but we calmed down eventually, falling back heavily against the pillows. Throwing one arm over his chest, I pressed myself into his side. "It's a good thing I taught you to cuddle before this point." He poked me at my jest, even though his body shook with a chuckle.

With the sound of the waves going in one ear, and James' slow breathing in the other, it didn't take long for the lids of my eyes to grow heavy, and sleep to overtake me.

-x-

The sun wasn't what woke me up, as it usually did. What did rouse me from my sleep was how tightly my body was pressed up against James', and how he was nearly on top of me. My arms were trapped between us, and even my legs were restrained by his. Turning my neck the best I could to ask him what the meaning of this position was, I came to see only his still sleeping face.

I was very close to shouting directly in his ear to wake him up, but my action was put to a stop when he breathed in again. I listened intently, waiting for another one to follow the first. He breathed out slowly, and with another intake of breath, the sound did indeed come again.

He was snoring. James Potter was snoring. It wasn't as loud as my grandfather Evans' was, not even close, but it was still definitely a snore. I could only smile, as he let out another light snore. Well, he had to have some flaw, didn't he?

One loud snort came, and I tried to stifle my sniggers, pressing my lips together tightly. I would never let him live this down. Not in his entire life. But how had I not noticed it before? Sure, I was usually sleeping at the same time he was, but how could I have missed it?

With a last snore that was louder than the rest, James' hazel eyes blinked open, and for a moment he squeezed me a little tighter, before he relaxed against the mattress again.

"Good morning," I greeted, not being able to hide my smirk.

Something must have been in my voice as well, for he was wide awake in a split second, giving me a hard stare.

"What?" He asked, suspicion filling his gaze.

"I don't even get a 'good morning'? After last night? Goodness, Potter. I thought you'd be all-"

"Why are you looking at me like that?" He interrupted. He knew my sarcastic voice too well; it was obvious I was stalling.

"Oh, no reason, But you could have warned me before I married you, you know." Turning my gaze away from him, I stared up at the ceiling, trying to contain my laughter for a little while longer.

"Warned you? About what, exactly?" He was getting a little annoyed. I guess his misery wouldn't have to last very long.

"About your terrible snoring." My voice was tight with waiting laughter, as I looked back at him. I thought he would join in laughing with me, as he would be able to tell I was teasing by the look on my face, but he only stared at me.

The expression on his face wasn't serious, not at all. But it was one that was just as common as his laughter, and it probably should have been more feared than any serious manner of his. A mischievous gleam had taken residence in his eyes, and a smirk was pulling at the corner of his lips.

"You're right, I should have warned you. But it also would have been nice if you'd given me a warning, before I got myself into this arrangement of ours, Mrs. Potter."

A slight frown bent my brow as I stared at him. He'd sure turned the tables quickly, but he'd always had a talent for that, hadn't he?

"I don't know what you mean." I felt no anger, but something else. Confusion, disbelief, maybe a little bit of nervousness.

"Why do you think I'm like this?" He indicated with his chin, his arms and legs wrapped securely around my form.

"How should I know? Maybe you like to cling in your sleep, just like you snore!" I offered. I'd actually forgotten about our intimate position; his adorable snoring had distracted me.

Now he laughed, but for only a moment. He pressed his lips against the frown that had formed on my forehead, and he let his lips drag across my brow, down to my temple, my cheek, before pressing them to my own lips. It was torture not to respond to him, but I wanted answers.

"What do you have to say for yourself then?" I asked, speaking right against his mouth.

His teeth grazed my bottom lip as he pulled back just enough to talk without our lips brushing.

"You sure like to move around a lot in your sleep."

Mortification filled me, as James watched me in silence. There wasn't much I could say to that, because I knew exactly what he was talking about. On a family vacation when I was younger, Petunia and I had shared a bed in a hotel room. In the morning, she had raged to my parents, saying she wouldn't sleep in the same bed as me for as long as she lived, because I was a "blanket hog" and had "kicked her all night long". I thought I'd maybe grown out of it as I'd grown older. Apparently not.

Heat filled my cheeks, and I couldn't imagine how it looked to James. At least his snoring had been cute. But kicking in your sleep? How is that at all endearing?

"I-…er, I'm sorry. I thought that I-"

Now he was doing exactly as I thought he would have before after I'd accused him of snoring, his eyes crinkling in laughter. "What in the world are you sorry for?"

With a shrug, I kept my eyes on his sharp collar bone, running a finger along the skin there.

"You stopped when I did this, you know." He muttered, tightening his hold on me again to specify what he was talking about. My blush only deepened.

"Yeah, but I still kick when I thought it had gone away. Your snoring isn't bad at all. I actually think it's cute. But this, I just-"

Like the night before, all speaking was cut off by a sudden kiss. He angled his head down to mine, his hand sliding down to my thigh. I jumped a little at that, and he smiled against me.

"It's not a bad thing. I get to hold you while we sleep then. How could that possibly be bad?"

"Do you want my face to burn up?" I asked with a smile, feeling my cheeks grow impossibly hotter, probably rivaling the heat that would reach us on the beach this afternoon.

"But red looks so good on you," his voice came husky in my ear as he wove his fingers into my hair that was most likely a lighter shade than my cheeks now.

Kisses were pressed against my neck, with his hands searing against my stomach. My legs kicked automatically beneath us, and he chuckled against my skin.

The sun broke through our windows, spreading even more heat over the bare skin that the sheets didn't cover. In an unexpected moment, James ripped his lips from mine, giving me a strange look.

"What?" I asked, his incredulous face causing one of my eyebrows to slide up in wonderment.

"You think my snoring is cute?"

I could only laugh at his expression, and I pulled him back to me, never really providing him with an answer as we both got swept away in each other again.


	44. Cups of Coffee

It didn't matter how many times I woke up in the arms of James Potter, even as a Potter myself now, I would never get over the feeling. The puffs of breath at the back of my neck, his hair tickling my ear, and his arms loosely wound around my waist. I really would have preferred to spend the rest of the day, just lying there.

Unfortunately, the beach had other ideas. Other tourists apparently started their days much earlier than we did, and there was shouting and high pitched giggles already wafting in on the wind through our open windows.

"I think I prefer squeaky swings instead," James' groggy voice came from where his face was smashed into the pillow.

"Me too," I groaned, sitting up. James' arms tried to pull me back down, but I only swooped down to press a kiss to his cheek before disentangling myself out of the sheets. His Quidditch shirt from yesterday hung over the chair in the corner, and I slipped it on, inhaling deeply as I hugged it close to me. "At least I've gotten used to the swings. I couldn't fall asleep again this morning if I tried."

My bare feet padded down the hallway to our loft's kitchen. Our honeymoon vacation was almost up, and even though we'd been reluctant to take our honeymoon, we were now growing hesitant to leave our place by the beach, and return to the fray.

Stretching up on the tips of my toes, I got hold of the filters on the top shelf and threw one in the machine. Switching the coffeemaker on and scooping some grounds in, the kitchen immediately began to fill with the heavenly smell of coffee.

My family had been more of the tea type, and I did enjoy cups of tea now and then. But James and I had stopped into a Muggle café around the corner from our flat once, and we'd been instantly infatuated with the drink. The warm, bitter taste and all of the rich flavors swirling around in one cup. A smile reached my lips just thinking about it. With a pop and a buzz, the machine brewed the perfect amount of the dark liquid for two. We only needed one pot, usually. It worked out nicely between us.

The scent must have flown out through the rest of the loft, for the door slid open behind me, and James moaned, "Oh, that smells good."

He leaned his forehead onto my shoulder, bringing me back to curl into him like we'd been in bed just a little while ago.

"Me or the coffee?" My eyes fluttered shut, head falling back as he ran his lips along the valley of my shoulder.

"Both," I felt his smirk grow. He thought he was so clever, but his comment made me smile anyway.

One of his hands ran along my arm, following its path down to my mug of coffee, bringing it up to his own lips. As he swallowed, his face crunched up into a sour expression.

"Merlin," Like a child would have, he stuck out his tongue, roughly dropping my mug onto the counter. "How can you even drink that? That stuff is down right nasty!"

He pulled his arms from around my body and actually rubbed his tongue with his hand, picking up his cup of coffee with the other.

"It's your own fault you took a sip of my coffee," I reminded him in a sing-song voice, bringing my own mug up to my lips. "And it is not nasty."

The reason why we only needed one pot was because James and I took our coffee very differently. He liked some creamer with his coffee, while I liked some coffee with my creamer.

"Yes, it is. That rubbish is disgusting." He assured me with a nod, taking a sip from his own cup.

"I don't know why you insist on saying that. I'm not the biggest fan of your kind of coffee either, but I don't slander it."

"Slander? There is no slander! When we get home, we will do a test. Have everyone get a sample of each of our coffees, and we will see who the winner is."

"Winner? There is no winner! I'll bet you anything that not everyone will think yours is 'the best', as you put it."

"I never called it 'the best', even though it is," James smirked in her direction, holding his coffee up as if in an act of "cheers" from across the room.

"Well don't expect me to kiss you after you drink your icky coffee," I answered, leaving the kitchen. Slipping on some sweatpants that James must have brought out with the intention of wearing, but had decided for his boxers instead, I kicked open the back door and my feet came in contact with the already warm sand.

There was some thumping, door slamming, and cursing before James ran up beside me.

"Now you are the slanderer I believe," He hadn't bothered to put on a shirt, which wasn't necessarily unacceptable on the beach, but it still made me roll my eyes. "And what are you saying I won't be kissing you?"

"Not with that nasty aftertaste left to linger."

"You make it sound like some sort of rotten fish."

"Great, now I'm thinking about that, and your coffee."

"So no kissing?"

"Obviously. I like my coffee better anyway."

James stopped, digging a foot in the sand, with an eyebrow arched up at me. "Well, if you like it so much, why don't you marry it?"

"Maybe I will," I considered, pursing my lips against the ceramic of the mug where I had just taken a sip.

"Now that's enough," He practically growled, lunging towards me from his spot.

The attentions of everyone else on the beach were on us as James tackled me into the water, and my scream was cut off as my head went underwater. There was a lot of splashing and thrashing of arms and legs as both of us attempted to get oxygen into our lungs again. Once my head was above the water line, salt water trickled into my eyes. Before I could even get them open, James crashed his lips to mine. His hands ran over my ears, cheeks, all the way to my shoulders, and he tugged me closer. There was a small taste of coffee on his tongue, but it didn't bother me at all, much to my chagrin. Now I wouldn't be able to tease him about anything.

"Screw you," I said. At least, that's what I meant to say; I'm not sure if he heard it that way, since his mouth had still been obstructing mine.

"Be my guest, Potter," he smirked, knocking our foreheads together.

"People are staring," I whispered, my eyes catching an older couple glancing in our direction, frowns on their faces.

"So?" His voice reverberated against my ear.

The waves rocked against us, as if trying to shoo both of us out of the ocean and back onto the beach. I let my hands slide up into his hair, kissing his cheek lightly.

Something bumped my knee as the waves came forward again, and I reached down in the water to push it away, but my fingers caught on a familiar loop.

"What the-" Covered in some sand and filled with water, I pulled my coffee mug out from under the waves.

James pulled just far enough away to stare at my mug with me. One hand left my shoulders, and searched the sand below us, and pulled out his own mug too.

"Oh," He shrugged.

"Oh? Oh! That's all you have to say for yourself? I only had a few sips of my perfect coffee! Now there's probably some fish whizzing around the ocean because he got more of my coffee than I did!"

I pushed away from him as he let out a chuckle that immediately broke into full out laughter. His Quidditch shirt was heavy with water as I stood, and I surged through the shallow water away from him. I didn't get very far before James caught the back of the sweatpants. He almost yanked them right off of me as he hauled me back into the waves.

His laugh filled my ears when I resurfaced again. Sending him a glare that countered the grin threatening to cover my lips, I threw the salt water that had filled my mug that should be filled with coffee, in his face. James spluttered a little, but kept laughing.

"You owe me a cup of coffee," I warned, letting him press another salty kiss to my lips.


End file.
